Comments on: Science Fiction, the internet, and the evils of ‘genre staples’ http://simontkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/ Politics, Political Science and some other stuff Thu, 24 May 2012 11:38:38 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: The New Old Journalism « Simon T. Kaye http://simontkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/#comment-364 Sat, 09 May 2009 13:20:09 +0000 http://simonkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/#comment-364 [...] that their coverage is worth actually paying for (I think I’ve complained about his talk before…). Of the writers, ‘columnist’ Polly Toynbee was particularly derisive of this [...]

]]> By: Cliff Burns http://simontkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/#comment-69 Sat, 02 Jun 2007 20:12:54 +0000 http://simonkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/#comment-69 Thorn:
Peter Watts dropped me a line after I sent him my “Good Science = Bad Fiction” article and told me I was slow off the line. He’d been saying the same thing for years. You should drop him a line at his rifters.com website and ask for a copy of the presentation he sent me. If anything, he was harder on scientist/scribes than I was. And this coming from a scientist/scribe whose book was just shortlisted for the Hugo. Query: do you read science fiction novels/stories for the good writing or the great ideas? Take a minute and think about it. There is a distinction. I myself can’t think of too many scientist/authors who sentence structure, word choice and syntax, their unique and innovative style blows me away. Would I stack Greg Benford against Colson Whitehead? Nope. Ben Bova vs. Cormac McCarthy (what a mismatch!). David Brin toe-to-toe with Don Delillo? The mind boggles. You may argue it’s apples and oranges but I’m saying as someone who dissects and creates with the printed word on a day to day basis (for the past two + decades) there are objective distinctions that can be drawn between the best SF writers and the best literary scribes. Simon’s original post dealt with “genre staples”–every genre is cursed with them (don’t get me started on the horrors of fantasy, now THAT’S a cess pit). Science fiction is no exception. Once Simon rests his eyes, perhaps he can post a followup and elaborate on his point further. I won’t presume to speak on his behalf…

]]> By: Thorn http://simontkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/#comment-67 Wed, 30 May 2007 21:25:15 +0000 http://simonkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/#comment-67 Durn it. Why does my system freeze just when I’ve typed a response? Anyway, here we go again. Cliff, sorry I called you Chris. But I must say I find your derision of scifi-writing scientists astonishing; I won’t bother listing all the excellent writer-scientists I have read to support my comment, unless you ask me to. Also I’m not really in the mood for a quarrel so I’ll leave it there. I’m just rather concerned at your apparent absolutism. As regards male children, computing and not reading. the correlation is tenuous at best. Research is still ongoing but first findings suggest that this is a phenomenon found only in a small section of western/westernised society and has more related to a ‘counter-intellectual’ movement in certain circles than to computer gaming activities. The good news is that it is definitely not a global phenomenon, and cause-and-effect are definitely not established. (I follow this kind of thing closely, being a psychologist by training and trade). Anyway, nuff said. Good luck with your mediaeval Christians, Simon; may they stay in line for you :-)

]]> By: Cliff Burns http://simontkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/#comment-66 Wed, 30 May 2007 00:43:18 +0000 http://simonkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/#comment-66 I cede the floor to others. When you have another posting up, lemme know. I have a new one up on my site, deriding scientists who write sci fi. Sure to piss some people off. Drop by once you’ve finished your studies and add to the discussion. Already have one very lengthy–and very smart–reply that I’m still digesting. Until later…

]]> By: simonkaye http://simontkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/#comment-65 Tue, 29 May 2007 23:24:40 +0000 http://simonkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/#comment-65 Well, like the drunken almost-Jew I can sort of speak as- What’s wrong with the wandering all over the place? I’m enjoying it very greatly. If I wasn’t exhausted from over-studying medieval Christianity right now, I’d be making a pertinent and intriguing comment of my own on the topic. But I am, so I’m not.

]]> By: Cliff Burns http://simontkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/#comment-63 Mon, 28 May 2007 23:06:00 +0000 http://simonkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/#comment-63 Running while reading a book…hmmm…nope, you got me there. I–wait! What about books on tape/iPod? Ah, Hell, with my coordination I wouldn’t dare try it. Besides, you can’t get a good rhythm going while listening to Grisham. I have read some of the graphic novels you mention, Joe, and I’ll stick by what I said about the writing being subpar, grade VI level. In any case, I think we’re veering off Simon’s original posting so I’ll clam up at this point and let the discussion go back to the matter at hand: those genre staples. Simon, please moderate and pull us debaters back on track. Otherwise we’ll wander all over the place like drunken Irishmen (coming from someone whose ancestors come from those parts). Best to you, everyone.

]]> By: sketchyjoe http://simontkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/#comment-61 Mon, 28 May 2007 15:55:31 +0000 http://simonkaye.com/2007/05/27/science-fiction-the-internet-and-the-evils-of-genre-staples/#comment-61 300 was style over substance. It was incredibly silly. I still enjoyed it for what it was. Big blokes shouting and stabbing each other. It didn’t pretend to be anything else. 300 didn’t have any educational value, but it wasn’t supposed to, and it probably still inspired some people to find out more about the real Greek history.

The reason 300 was a silly over-the-top film was because 300 was a silly over-the-top graphic novel, not because it was just a graphic novel. Batman Begins was a fantastic film and that was based on a comic. V For Vendetta was a crap film because it dumbed down the intelligence of the comic. Comics like The Watchmen, The Sandman, Transmetropolitan, Astro City, Demo, Y: The Last Man, DMZ, Promethea, Planetary and countless others are intelligent, well-written works. A lot of comics are crap, but most of the crap comics are the ones that fall back on the genre staples that Simon was complaining about in his original post.

As for video games, they probably are a negative influence on film in some ways, but there have been big and stupid films for years, not everything has to be an intellectual journey (though some video games are), some things are just fun. And as for it being a passive medium, I’ve never seen someone running whilst reading a book.

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