Farewell SF Signal - You Will Be Missed

It was with shock and extreme sadness that I read the news yesterday that SF Signal is shutting down. It's hard saying goodbye to something that's had a lot of influence on you.  I've been frequenting that site for years, and was privileged to be a contributor.

Running a blog is a lot of work. It's not easy coming up with content ideas, and the best posts tend to be time consuming to produce. I can only imagine how much harder it is for aggregate sites, with numerous articles to edit and schedule, etc.

SF Signal did amazing work and covered a wide variety of topics. I'll miss their Mind Melds, the link posts, the monthly what's coming out posts, and so much more.

Thank you for 12 years of effort. You will be missed.

Sarah, Please Keep Doing Special Needs in Strange Worlds

I don’t normally comment on controversial issues in SFF, but sometimes you can’t stay silent.

SF Signal posted a Special Needs in Strange Worlds entry titled, “We are all disabled” that has caused a lot of hurt. (The post has been removed from the site but @eilatan took this screenshot of the post and asked that it only be shared with a TRIGGER WARNING)  While I was not personally affected by it (I found it more confusing than anything, and didn’t agree with the premise), I understand that many in our community were.  

I have learned a lot from the Special Needs in Strange Worlds column.  I have also learned a lot from the responses I’ve read about this particular post - responses that explained why it was insensitive to post, offensive, how it fed into stereotypes associated with autism.  How it hurt to read on such a well respected site as SF Signal.

SF Signal messed up.  Sarah messed up.  

I was taught that three things are necessary when you make a mistake:

1. Apologize 

This has been done.   

2. Make restitution 

You have to somehow make up for what you’ve done.  First, they removed the post.  Good start.  Some other possibilities to help in this instance could be to post on SF Signal one or two responses to the original post, explaining why it was offensive and different ways negative stereotypes hurt.  Several posts by autistic people, showing different viewpoints, would be wonderful - to get more voices out there and counteract the inaccuracies of the offending piece.

3. Try to do better / Don’t make the same mistake again

I’m sure Sarah will be more careful going ahead - assuming she decides to go ahead with the column.  Maybe a panel would be more appropriate for screening responses for this column than one individual, and some people will volunteer to help her with it.  Maybe more people will send her their experiences to post in the column so it’s more representational.

Or maybe she’ll decide it’s not worth the fear of making another mistake and close the column down as she deals with the fall out of her mistake.

Criticism is good.  We need to be able to point it out when people do things wrong.  But if we go too far and push people out of the genre for making mistakes, we’ll soon be in a very small, very empty room.  Because we all make mistakes.  All of us.  We can all do better.

And education is one way of doing better.  Education that this column usually provides.

I NEED this column.  I want to learn more about others, about what makes us different, and similar.  I want to know more about people’s experiences with disabilities so I can better understand my fellow man.  But like most people, I’m lazy.  I’ve stumbled across the occasional other post on this topic, but I don’t go out of my way looking for them.  We need posts about representation, about difference, about disability on sites like SF Signal that get a lot of genre traffic.  Because I’m not the only one who needs to learn about these things who won’t go looking for them.  

They need to be front and centre in genre if we want change, they need to be on the sites that get traffic, views, discussion.  

Mistakes hurt.  Sometimes they hurt a lot.  But if we don’t pick ourselves up and try again, if we give up, then we learn nothing from the mistakes.  And the mistakes simply repeat themselves in different venues at different times, with different people.  

Sarah, you made a mistake.  But I respect you.  I respect your work on the Special Needs in Strange Worlds column.  I’ve learned so much from you and that column.  This genre needs you.  Please, please keep doing it.  Don’t let this mistake be the end of this wonderful work you’ve done.

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ETA: I've just read this enlightening post on Flat Out which explains more of what was offensive about the original SF Signal post.  It's worth checking out.

And here's a response by Foz Meadows, which dissects the post, again pointing out some of the problematic language.

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2nd ETA: Sarah has decided to close down the Special Needs in Strange Worlds column on SF Signal but she's teaming up with Shana DuBois to create a website, tentatively named Own Voice, which will expand the ideas of SN in SW to include more content, interviews, essays, etc. with a panel of people okaying content to avoid another mistake like the one that prompted the above post.  I think this is an excellent idea, and am excited to see how it expands.

12 Question SF/F/H Book Meme

SF Signal did a book meme post this past Saturday and I've now got time to do it. :)

1. The last sf/f/h book I read and enjoyed was: The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey (YA); Up Against It by M. J. Locke (adult SF)
2. The last sf/f/h book I read and did not enjoy was: something I didn't finish and now can't remember
3. A sf/f/h book that I would recommend to new sf/f/h readers is: 0.4 by Mike Lancaster (YA); Transformation by Carol Berg (fantasy); The Shining by Stephen King (horror); On Basilisk Station by David Weber (SF)
4. A sf/f/h book that I would recommend to seasoned sf/f/h readers is: Kop by Warren Hammond (SF); The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie or The Adamantine Palace by Stephen Deas (fantasy), Shadows by John Saul (horror)
5. The sf/f/h book I most want to read next is: I have a huge list that's constantly changing and growing.  Some books I want to read soon (but won't due to other obligations) are: The Explorer by James Smythe, The Testament of Jesse Lamb by Jane Rogers, The Killing Moon by N. K. Jemisin, A Once Crowded Sky by Tom King, Stand on Zanzibar by John Brenner, The World Inside by Robert Silverberg, Throne of the Crescent Moon by Saladin Ahmed...
6. My favorite sf/f/h book series include: Terry Pratchett's Discworld, Weiss & Hickman's Death Gate Cycle, Terry Brooks' Shannara Books (though I'm woefully behind), R. A. Salvatore's Drizzt books (which I'm also behind in)
7. I will read anything by this sf/f/h author: Carol Berg.  She's created several worlds, all complex with different magic systems and manages to torture her characters while still imbuing her books with humour.
8. The first sf/f/h book I read was: either The 7th Princess by Nick Sullivan (I managed to track down a copy and enjoy it just as much as an adult) or Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh by Robert O'Brien; the book that got me reading SF/F almost exclusively was The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks, but I had to start it 2 or 3 times before I really got into it
9. The sf/f/h book I’m most surprised that more people don’t like is: Transformation by Carol Berg.  It's got humour, character growth, magic, and some very dark moments.  Berg's a fantastic author and criminally under read.
10. The sf/f/h book I’m surprised so many people do like is: Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein.  I forced myself to finish it because it's so well revered, and hated every page.
11. The most expensive sf/f/h book I own is: None of my books were more expensive than the art and history texts I needed for university.  I paid $90 for a hardcover Chaucer, which is beautiful and worth every cent.
12. The number of sf/f/h books I own and have yet to read is: at least 50-100, not counting my husband's collection.  With his books, add at least 100 or 200 more.

Hugo Award Winners Announced

Locus Online has published the winners of this year's Hugo Awards (in draft form).  Congratulations to all the winners, particularly SF Signal for best fanzine (Yay!!!) and Jim C. Hines for best fan writer.  :)

Find Me Elsewhere On The Web

A friend of mine and former co-worker from the World's Biggest Bookstore asked me to write up a guest post for her Christian Romance blog, A Fair Substitute For Heaven.  The topic: 5 Canadian Fantasy/SF authors you should read (they're mostly fantasy authors, as that's my preferred genre).

I also participated in an SF Signal Mind Meld last week, talking about the most interesting books on our to be read piles.  There are some great books mentioned, so head on over and give it a look.

SF Signal Podcast: Our Favorite SF&F Books of 2011

I had the pleasure of being on this week's SF Signal podcast.  If you're looking for some good books that came out in 2011, some great ones were mentioned by all the panelists (Paul Weimer, John DeNardo, Andrew Liptak, Aidan Moher andPatrick Hester).

So head on over and listen in. :)

SF Signal's Holiday Gift Guide for 2011

I know I'm a bit late posting this (as I've seen it several places now, outside of SF Signal), but I've been busy, so you're getting it now.  It's a great guide with some awesome gift giving ideas for the people on your list.  And you can find it here.

Mind Meld and Posting Frequency

The latest SF Signal Mind Meld asked several contributors what the best media they consumed in 2011 was, and I've answered with regards to books.  Once the year is over I'll revisit that list, adding a few more titles and adding descriptions as to why I thought each book was good (or, more likely, links to the reviews I've done for each).  Mention your own favourite reads of the year (so far) in comments!

In the meantime, with the Christmas season upon us, I'll be working more often and will therefore have less blogging time.  I'm hoping to keep up my current schedule, and I have a few interviews and reading lists, etc. planned and ready to go, but if I do post less frequently it's because I'm at work or trying to recuperate from work. 

This is the best - and worst - time to be a bookseller.  Best because people want suggestions and I get to rave about the amazing books I've read, point out books people haven't heard of and do nifty displays, worst because some people aren't as polite as they could be, what with the frustrations of shopping and all.  Still, I'm looking forward to seeing co-workers I don't normally get to work with anymore and help people find great books for all their loved ones.  :)

SF Signal Podcast: Science Fiction Movies Every Fan Should See

I had the pleasure of being on one of this week's SF Signal Podcasts, talking about SF movies.  I took the stance that to truly understand modern films, you have to have a basis in what's come before.  So I suggested some older science fiction movies, based on what I've seen myself and the SF film history page on Wikipedia.  Namely: Metropolis (1927), The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), Godzilla (1954), Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956), 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), Planet of the Apes (1968), Star Wars (1977), Alien (1979), Blade Runner (1982), Terminator (1984), Aliens (1986) Gattaca (1997), and Matrix (1999).  These are movies that, even if you're not a fan of them, they're worthwhile watching for the impact they had on society and the films that came after them.

 
Obviously a lot of fantastic films are missing, some of which the other podcast members mentioned, and some we merely discussed at the end (or after the podcast ended, thinking of the films we'd forgotten to mention).  Films like Westworld, Jurassic Park, 5th Element, 12 Monkeys, Logan's Run and on and on.

I've noted down a bunch of movies I've yet to see (including Forbidden Planet - for shame), that were mentioned on the podcast and will be watching them (and posting reviews) over the next few months.  So far I've seen The Thing From Another World and John Carpenter's The Thing.

Also on the podcast were:

• Lisa Paitz Spindler
• Scott Cupp
• Carrie Cuinn
• Derek Johnson
• Patrick Hester

What would make your SF essential film list?

SF Signal Turns 8 Years Old!

One of the best SF sites on the internet, SF Signal, turned 8 years old on the weekend.  I'm honoured to work with such a great group of people making the site the best we can.  Here's wishing the site many years to come!

New Author Spotlight: James Knapp

I've been so busy lately I keep forgetting to post these. I've started a new series at SF Signal called New Author Spotlight. It's designed to introduce authors with 3 books or less in the different SF/F subgenres.

Here's the first one I did, posted a few weeks back. In future I'll try to post them the week after they show up on SF Signal.

Today's spotlight shines on James Knapp.

James Knapp's books include:

• State of Decay by James Knapp (Roc)
• The Silent Army by James Knapp (Roc)

Here's the cover copy for State of Decay:

Just because you're dead doesn't mean you're useless...
A thrilling debut novel of a dystopian future populated by a new breed of zombie.
They call them revivors - technologically reanimated corpses - and away from the public eye they do humanity's dirtiest work. But FBI agent Nico Wachalowski has stumbled upon a conspiracy involving revivors being custom made to kill-and a startling truth about the existence of these undead slaves.

If you like these titles, you might also like:

• KOP by Warren Hammond (Tor Books)
• Those Who Walk in Darkness by John Ridley (Aspect)
• Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick (Del Rey)

Meet SF Signal's Newest Reviewer

That's right. I'll be contributing monthly reviews to SF Signal. Here's my first. I'm also planning on doing monthly debut author lists. You'll see my posts on this blog eventually, but in the meantime SF Signal has lots of great content and if you haven't been there, you definitely need to check it out. I psyched at being picked to join such an amazing team.