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Science Fantasy worlds

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ihatepeas:
Far be it from me to detract from the fascinating Michael Crichton debate (not being sarcastic), but I'm going to anyway.

I read C.S. Lewis' Out of the Silent Planet after much prodding from my best friend, and I was completely in awe of the world (and universe) he created. The man had an amazing imagination. It was beautiful in parts, and some places not so beautiful, but it was always very original.

I, too, enjoyed the world of Sharon Shinn's Angel quintet. Samaria was totally believable and really interesting.

--Sarah

meg_evonne:
Some really deep interesting discussion in here. I do consider quite a bit of Crichton sci fi.  I suppose it depends on what book you read first.  As to created worlds... Dune, Ringworld and I'll toss in Andre Norton's worlds McCaffrey certainly, although her not so distant in the future "The Ship that Sang" is still one of my all time favorite reads.My very first sci fi was read by a teacher in 3rd grade, Twenty-One Balloons, by DuBois.  Do you remember that one? Talk about a fun world he made out of Kracatoa (spelling..) and all those wonderfully fun machines they used in everyday life.  Wow, it was great! That took you to Jules Verne etc Back then the writing styles could be several pages of delightful exposition, and we could even enjoy passive voice for what it was telling us, which most editors today wouldn't allow in the door from what I can tell. *Posted same time as peas, had forgotten the CS Lewis trilogy which also included Prelandria, never cared for Narnia, but that adult trilogy was super.

What fascinates me is the width and variety of the sci fi genre, which helps and hurts us.  It is SO varied and we are all so individually attuned to certain types of sci fi that it amazes me that publishers put up with us. This was posted on another thread and I've kept it because it's so true.  Our tastes are so narrow in what parts of sci fi we enjoy. Some books, like the Dresden Files, seem to cross the majority of those lines and bring us together.  Enjoy if you haven't run across this one.

How many fantasy characters does it take to change a light bulb?
Epic Fantasy Writer: How many you got?
Traditional Fantasy Writer: One. There can be only one Chosen One.
Quest Fantasy Writer: One, but he must form a party of adventurers to
retrieve the magic pliers first.
Romantic Fantasy Writer: Two, but they must do it while sharing a
passionate kiss
Erotic Fantasy Writer: Three, but they must do it naked while sharing a
passionate kiss
Horror Fantasy Writer: One, as long as it's a tentacle slivering from
the bottomless pit.
Urban fantasy writer: Three. A werewolf, a vampire, and a chic in
leather with a gun.
Literary Fantasy Writer: One, but it will take four pages to describe
it.
Slipstream Fantasy Writer: Is the light bulb an allegory for birth or
death?
Tech Sci-Fi Writer: Who uses light bulbs? Honestly...

I suspect that most of us would only chose three or four of the above breakdowns to read--yet here we are sharing the sci-fi genre.

the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh:

--- Quote from: meg_evonne on August 24, 2007, 05:39:57 PM ---How many fantasy characters does it take to change a light bulb?
Horror Fantasy Writer: One, as long as it's a tentacle slivering from
the bottomless pit.

--- End quote ---

Unless it's Lovecraftian horror, in which case the answer is "All of them. Never split the party."

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