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Mr. Stirling (above) is called Stephen Michael, he is originally Canadian and now lives in New Mexico, and to the best of my knowledge was raised mildly Anglican. I think you can blame Harry Turtledove rather than Joseph Smith for his fascination with brokedown North America.
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May 19, 2019 22:44
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AlbieQuirky posted:Mr. Stirling (above) is called Stephen Michael, he is originally Canadian and now lives in New Mexico, and to the best of my knowledge was raised mildly Anglican. What can we blame for Sterling's repeatedly asserting that he'd happily push a button to kill all Muslims? (On the old soc.history.what-if Usenet group.)
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May 20, 2019 00:15
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I was once accused of writing S. M. Stirling fanfiction (never read him, just wrote a similar apocalypse scenario), and now I feel even weirder about that.
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May 20, 2019 00:21
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Lemniscate Blue posted:What can we blame for Sterling's repeatedly asserting that he'd happily push a button to kill all Muslims? He’s a bigoted rear end in a top hat?  I wasn’t defending him in any way, just pointing out that he’s not a US Mormon.
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May 20, 2019 02:01
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Isn't this the guy who wrote that alternative history series about an evil, superpowered South Africa conquering everyone? I haven't read them, but they sound ridiculous.
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May 20, 2019 04:50
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Shwoo posted:Isn't this the guy who wrote that alternative history series about an evil, superpowered South Africa conquering everyone? I haven't read them, but they sound ridiculous. Yeah it's basically "the Boers conquer the world through the power of Slavery." The Wikipedia article on the series reads like a description of somebody's Sonic the Hedgehog OC except it's a South African Ultra-Mega Nazi that's more powerful than all 3 reiches combined. Apparently the only reason the Union wins in the ACW is because they send hordes of Mexicans against the boer-supplied steam tanks the Confederacy has. 
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May 20, 2019 06:44
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he's claimed the premise is 'what if the bad guys suddenly had protagonist luck'
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May 20, 2019 06:47
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That sounds like the plot of a lot of 'the Nazis win WW2' stories.
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May 20, 2019 09:29
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Shwoo posted:Isn't this the guy who wrote that alternative history series about an evil, superpowered South Africa conquering everyone? I haven't read them, but they sound ridiculous. Yeah. Dude's actually able to write some pretty good and clever stories (I used to like his stuff up to and including the Island in the Sea of Time series), which just goes to show that bigoted assholeism isn't always incompatible with talent. Haven't read anything he's written in the last 15 years or so though. The funniest part of the ISOT series was at the end where the bad guy fucks up by insulting and underestimating the guy who was the historical inspiration for Odysseus. Yeah, that didn't go so well.
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May 20, 2019 10:00
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AlbieQuirky posted:Mr. Stirling (above) is called Stephen Michael, he is originally Canadian and now lives in New Mexico, and to the best of my knowledge was raised mildly Anglican. My bad, let me change my opinion to “conservative Christians shouldn’t write genre fiction” then.
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May 20, 2019 13:37
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 https://imgur.com/gallery/YM18dAU I found this in a free bin at a local bookshop and the “commentary” continues to haunt me to this day. I can’t bring myself to read the actual novel, but from what I’ve read online I’m not missing much.
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May 22, 2019 00:02
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Labes for days posted:My bad, let me change my opinion to “conservative Christians shouldn’t write genre fiction” then. I’m 100% on board.
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May 22, 2019 01:11
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Kierena posted:
There is no way the book can hold a tenth of the horror that note brings.
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May 22, 2019 01:42
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Labes for days posted:My bad, let me change my opinion to “conservative Christians shouldn’t write genre fiction” then. loving Dan Simmons and everything he wrote that isn't Hyperion okay I'm done now
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May 22, 2019 01:51
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DACK FAYDEN posted:loving John C. Wright, who can write some great SF settings and his characters are all made of cardboard anyway but he's an insufferable smug Jesus-freak prick about it ever since his literal brain damage I posted this in the SFF thread but it bears repeating: C.M. Kruger posted:I've never considered ever reading anything by John C. Wright, because I saw his wikipedia photo long before I found out anything else about him. It's as much of a warning as a skull and crossbones on a container of poison:
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May 22, 2019 01:56
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DACK FAYDEN posted:loving John C. Wright, who can write some great SF settings and his characters are all made of cardboard anyway but he's an insufferable smug Jesus-freak prick about it ever since his literal brain damage Before that he was an insufferably smug libertarian prick. So I can't actually blame the jesus in this case.
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May 22, 2019 03:27
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The Lone Badger posted:Before that he was an insufferably smug libertarian prick. So I can't actually blame the jesus in this case.
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May 22, 2019 05:15
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Labes for days posted:My bad, let me change my opinion to “conservative Christians shouldn’t write genre fiction” then. While this is probably true of modern authors, Mr. Tolkien and Mr. Lewis would like a word with you.
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May 22, 2019 05:31
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DACK FAYDEN posted:loving John C. Wright, who can write some great SF settings and his characters are all made of cardboard anyway but he's an insufferable smug Jesus-freak prick about it ever since his literal brain damage Also he went on at some length about wanting to punch Terry Pratchett. gently caress that guy.
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May 22, 2019 09:36
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DACK FAYDEN posted:loving John C. Wright, who can write some great SF settings and his characters are all made of cardboard anyway but he's an insufferable smug Jesus-freak prick about it ever since his literal brain damage the terror and drood were both pretty good, though I haven't read them in a while, so not willing to die on that hill either
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May 22, 2019 11:25
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DACK FAYDEN posted:Yeah, he did a total 180 on his beliefs but he didn't change how insufferably smug he was about them. Which is actually kind of funny in a Phineas Gage sort of way. Or maybe I should say Philip K. Dick to at least remotely tie it into writers. I remember reading the Golden Age trilogy and the slowly-dawning horror as I realised that the author considered this to be a utopian society.
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May 22, 2019 12:02
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The Lone Badger posted:I remember reading the Golden Age trilogy and the slowly-dawning horror as I realised that the author considered this to be a utopian society. It was actually pretty interesting reading until the ghost of Ayn Rand emanated from the author's rear end.
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May 22, 2019 12:05
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Kierena posted:
I, uh, what
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May 22, 2019 12:32
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DACK FAYDEN posted:loving Dan Simmons and everything he wrote that isn't Hyperion It's weird to read the later Simmons' books and it's all like: interesting, hmmm, I see, cool, uh-huh, MASSIVE RIGHTWING CLICHE OUT OF NOWHERE, uh-huh, nice action ...
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May 22, 2019 12:52
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For those who need the content warning: the heroine is a women kidnapped from her husband and kids, including newborn twins, and forced by her kidnapper to marry/screw him because he foresees her as the mother of his heir. Oh, and she has magic amnesia during all this. That’s rape, folks.PJOmega posted:There is no way the book can hold a tenth of the horror that note brings. While I’m not sure having not read it myself, I did some digging and found one short review that describes the sort of horrors one will encounter From what I can gather the author pushed the envelope in her genre and has much better material; the only other review I found commented it felt like Small stopped trying with this book.
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May 22, 2019 13:59
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DACK FAYDEN posted:loving Dan Simmons and everything he wrote that isn't Hyperion Uh, are including the sequels in that? Because the only thing I remember about books 3 and 4 is the incredibly uncomfortable and gross sexualization of Space Girl-Jesus. She's 10 or something when she's introduced. Those books are super weird.
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May 22, 2019 14:41
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Konstantin posted:While this is probably true of modern authors, Mr. Tolkien and Mr. Lewis would like a word with you. I don’t like the Narnia books and they’re basically proselytization aimed at kids so gently caress Lewis. Was Tolkien conservative? I thought he got super angry when white supremacists started propping up his work as “proof” he thought orcs (aka black people) were subhuman.
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May 22, 2019 15:32
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Tolkien was very much a conservative Christian, but of the kind that fairly genuinely wished for a world of peace and kindness for all mankind - albeit preferably in their own countries, with India included as part of England etc.
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May 22, 2019 15:43
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Groke posted:Also he went on at some length about wanting to punch Terry Pratchett. gently caress that guy. Why did he want to punch Sir Terry?
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May 22, 2019 17:07
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SiKboy posted:Why did he want to punch Sir Terry? I'm gonna guess envy, no matter what his stated reasons were.
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May 22, 2019 17:08
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Loomer posted:Tolkien was very much a conservative Christian, but of the kind that fairly genuinely wished for a world of peace and kindness for all mankind - albeit preferably in their own countries, with India included as part of England etc. He did go on record telling the Nazis to go gently caress themselves and their antisemitism.
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May 22, 2019 17:16
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SiKboy posted:Why did he want to punch Sir Terry? Here he is, discussing his attendance at an event where Terry spoke on the issue quote:I sat and listened to pure evil being uttered in charming accents accentuated by droll witticism, and I did not stand up, and I did not strike the old man who uttered them across the mouth: and when he departed, everyone stood and gave him an ovation, even though he had done nothing in his life aside from entertain their idle afternoons. Only I did not stand, being too sick at heart. I did nothing, I said nothing. Was this Christian humility on my part, or merely the cowardice of the silence good men which allows evil men to triumph?
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May 22, 2019 17:17
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FMguru posted:Terry said he wanted to end his life on his own terms, after receiving a diagnosis of a terminal wasting disease. loving hell... I'd have been less disgusted if his reason was "envy" as it turns out.
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May 22, 2019 17:35
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SiKboy posted:loving hell... I'd have been less disgusted if his reason was "envy" as it turns out. Seriously. That was perverse.
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May 22, 2019 17:38
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Karia posted:Uh, are including the sequels in that? Because the only thing I remember about books 3 and 4 is the incredibly uncomfortable and gross sexualization of Space Girl-Jesus. She's 10 or something when she's introduced. Those books are super weird. (best idea in book 3 is totally wasted, that's the two guys sharing one crucifix so every time one dies the other is brought back to life so the church has to kill the one guy off every time the other guy dies)
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May 22, 2019 17:51
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FMguru posted:Terry said he wanted to end his life on his own terms, after receiving a diagnosis of a terminal wasting disease. Interesting now I want to punch him.
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May 22, 2019 18:12
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Karia posted:Uh, are including the sequels in that? Because the only thing I remember about books 3 and 4 is the incredibly uncomfortable and gross sexualization of Space Girl-Jesus. She's 10 or something when she's introduced. Those books are super weird. One and two are good. Three is a good idea with poor execution and a really lovely ending. Four is just garbage. Like, Simmons doesn't sexualize a child, but he does use some time tricks to jump her from a teen right to an adult so she's free to sexually pursue her former guardian who's then gets to be all "aw shucks, I'm just such a bumbling fool who's constantly being pulled into the paces of this cool, wise person. Oh she wants to gently caress now? Guess I better go along with it because she's so much smarter and wise than me." He then spends the rest of the book as the kind of jealous, needy boyfriend who calls his girl twenty times in one night and wonders who she's loving when she wont pick up. I really hated that last book.
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May 22, 2019 20:47
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SUPERMAN'S GAL PAL posted:For those who need the content warning: the heroine is a women kidnapped from her husband and kids, including newborn twins, and forced by her kidnapper to marry/screw him because he foresees her as the mother of his heir. Oh, and she has magic amnesia during all this. That’s rape, folks. See, all of that is bad but I can understand it being published. It's hosed up, but there is an audience for that sort of thing, even if it is often inexplicable to me what the allure is and especially in the face of other writing. But the truly horrifying thing to me is that someone handwrote that note in the book. Someone bent their pencil to paper for the pure fact they enjoyed it to such an extent.
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May 23, 2019 02:14
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there wolf posted:One and two are good. Three is a good idea with poor execution and a really lovely ending. Four is just garbage. Like, Simmons doesn't sexualize a child, but he does use some time tricks to jump her from a teen right to an adult so she's free to sexually pursue her former guardian who's then gets to be all "aw shucks, I'm just such a bumbling fool who's constantly being pulled into the paces of this cool, wise person. Oh she wants to gently caress now? Guess I better go along with it because she's so much smarter and wise than me." He then spends the rest of the book as the kind of jealous, needy boyfriend who calls his girl twenty times in one night and wonders who she's loving when she wont pick up. Yeah she ages up to 18 or 19 when he is like 35. If you're already using the theory of relativity so they can be in a relationship, why not make her around the same age? Nevermind the fact that they had this whole father daughter dynamic up to that point.
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May 23, 2019 03:12
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grittyreboot posted:Yeah she ages up to 18 or 19 when he is like 35. If you're already using the theory of relativity so they can be in a relationship, why not make her around the same age? Nevermind the fact that they had this whole father daughter dynamic up to that point. I feel like barely of-age teen starts sexual relationship with parental figure was a thing in 80's scifi. Like Anne McCaffery absolutely loved that to a disturbing extent.
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May 23, 2019 03:25
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