In addition to phasing out of the Duck of Minerva, I've also been slowing down my activities at New Books in Science Fiction and Fantasy. The channel has a new host, Michael Zummo, who has taken over most responsibilities. Still, I'm not entirely done. I have a new...
Well, sort of. I've been getting a surprising number of emails asking for new podcasts. This semester was a killer, and no one else on the team wants to spearhead the effort. I hope to do some more...
I completely forgot to flog this at the Duck. I'm sure that disappointed, oh, about zero people. Nonetheless, I persevere. From the write up: I first learned about Felix Gilman‘s work from the...
I already mentioned that this podcast was coming, but now it is out. From my summary at New Books in Science Fiction and Fantasy: When I agreed to host New Books and Science Fiction and Fantasy...
My interview with Madeline Ashby about her debut novel, Vn, is now up at New Books in Science Fiction and Fantasy. Argentina, Australia, Luxembourg, Rwanda, and South Korea elected to UN security council. At Democracy Arsenal Bill French has a two-part (1,2) series on US maritime strategy in the Pacific. Juan Cole on recent developments in the Syrian civil war. Patrick Chovanec discusses, on NPR, the "meltdown" of the Chinese solar-power industry. The RPI blog looks at Asian powers' reactions to the second US Presidential debate. Steve Walt's latest piece is, well, kind of odd. Adam Elkus...
My second NBinSFF podcast is live. “D.B. Jackson” is David B. Coe’s pen name for his new historical-fantasy series, The Thieftaker Chronicles. Thieftaker (Tor Books, 2012) centers on Ethan Kaille, a private detective and conjurer, as he investigates a murder in colonial Boston. David, who received a Ph.D. in U.S. history from Stanford University before embarking on a career as a novelist, weaves in plenty of period details and historical personages into an alternate Boston where conjuration is real, albeit suppressed by the authorities. David maintains a page of resources for those...
When I asked for suggestions for interview subjects for the NBinSFF podcast, Alastair Reynolds was high on the list (albeit mostly over email channels). Well, he agreed, and I'm scheduled to interview him tomorrow. The focus is Blue Remembered Earth. If anyone has suggestions for questions or themes, let me know. Also, this seems as good a time as any to ask for more suggestions for interview subjects.A few additional items:Interesting thing I've learned so far: the PR people at Tor? Aggressive. Very aggressive. Many of the other major SF&F publishing houses? Not so much. The "New Books in...
The New Books in Science Fiction and Fantasy channel of the New Books Network launched today. In its inaugural podcast, I interview Ken MacLeod about The Night Sessions. From my summary:As I hope comes through in the interview, I found The Night Sessions (Pyr, 2012) both fun to read and intellectually stimulating. It centers on DI Adam Ferguson as he investigates the murder of a priest in a near-future Edinburgh. Following the “Faith Wars” of the early twenty-first century the world has experienced a “Second Enlightenment” and aggressive secularism enjoys intellectual and political hegemony....