Category: Society
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SFWA, the Great SF/F Censoring, and WAFFLES
For those of you who aren’t really interested in the great hubub in the writing world, you can just skip this post. For the rest of you, I’m sure it’s been highly entertaining and also somewhat like watching an avalanche or train wreck. We’ve had the good, the bad, and the ugly. The good comes…
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Robocop Movie Review
I am not, as a general rule, a huge fan of movie remakes. Now and again, however, I’ll be pleasantly surprised. When I went to see it, I expected it to be a simple action flick. Lots of shooting, some explosions, and robots and bad guys getting mowed down left and right. What I didn’t…
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The Romantic Pessimist’s Argument for Space
I consider myself a romantic pessimist. I hope for the best… and plan for the worst. That said, I’m also a dreamer and most of my hopes and ambitions are tied to space. Not surprising, then, that I write science fiction, eh? I’m writing this post as something of a dialogue, a hope that we…
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47 Ronin Movie Review
Going with my decision to write up movie reviews for science fiction and fantasy movies, I feel I must review 47 Ronin. That said, while I enjoyed the movie, I feel a little conflicted. On the one hand, it was enjoyable, in and of itself (a popcorn movie, but fun), in a lot of ways…
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A SF Writer’s Thanksgiving
It’s Thanksgiving, a purely US holiday. I was talking with a friend of mine, an immigrant, who told me that he really didn’t get the whole idea of Thanksgiving, so he mostly just ignored it. I’ll say this, everyone has their own take on it, but for me, it’s a time to reflect on all…
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Thor: Dark World Review
I’ll preface this by commenting that I grew up on action and even a few comic book movies… but I never read comic books. So while I’m sure there are some diehard comic book fans who know far more about Thor than me, well, that’s fine. I’m reviewing this as a movie, and also as…
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Urban Fantasy
Urban fantasy is, at its root, a mishmash of a variety of genres. The typical urban fantasy author often combines one or more genres of fiction with fantasy in their story. The fun of urban fantasy stories often lies in the contrast between the ordinary and the extraordinary. Wizards duke it out with magic and…
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Eagles and Jet Engines
I distinctly remember when two NASA astronauts visited my elementary school. They showed off bits and pieces of space technology, talked about how bright a future we’d have (where all of us would be afforded the opportunity to go to space) and generally made a lot of kids really excited. Like some other things, the…
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Remembering September 11, 2001
I started to post something rather trivial about books that have affected my writing, and I realized I really should write something about September 11, this being the day and all. For those only interested in writing, well, this is mostly me rambling about my impressions of the effect on society and a bit on…
Kal Spriggs 