Jeremy Clift's Blog, page 3
June 2, 2023
What are the Hugos ?
The Hugo Award is an annual literary award for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year, given at the World Science Fiction Convention and chosen by its members. The Hugo is widely considered the premier award in science fiction. The award is administered by the World Science Fiction Society. It is named after Hugo Gernsback, the founder of the pioneering science fiction magazine Amazing Stories. Hugos were first given in 1953, at the 11th World Science Fiction Convention, and have been awarded every year since 1955. Click on the link for a great explanatory video.
December 12, 2021
Reviews - Top 5 Recent Sci-Fi books
Quite a good list from science fiction fanatic Dr. Bertalan Mesko, who calls himself the Medical Futurist. He is an author, keynote speaker, and a geek doctor with a PhD in genomics.
Dip Your Toes In (starter sci-fi)
The Sci-Fi genre can be intimidating because it is so wide. Emily Fox decided to create a "Beginner's Guide to Sci-fi" for those new to the subject. Here are books she recommends for beginners who want to read some sci-fi books and don't know where to start.
Whether you usually read more contemporaries or action-packed books, you should be able to find the sci-fi equivalent here that will keep you reading!
Why You Should Catch Up With Dune
Dune is often cited as the best-selling science fiction book in history. Dune is not an easy read by any stretch of the imagination but the journey that Frank Herbert takes us on through his series and the lessons that are taught along the way makes the story worthwhile. In this video, author Quinn Howard lists his the top reasons why The Dune Series is worth your time and attention.
To complement this, here's a review by first-time reader Merphy Napier:
Frequently Bypassed Hard Sci-fi Movies (add to the list)
Goes without saying but these sci-fi movies have always been the highlight of Hollywood but with time, they have often become criminally undervalued. In this video, we explore the riveting world of 11 such hidden gems that were made with a lot of effort but few talk about now.
List
1. Contact 1997
2. Europa Report 2013
3. Solaris 1973
4. The Andromeda Strain 1971
5. Moon 2009
6. Arrival 2016
7. Sunshine 2007
8. Silent Running 1972
9.The Man from Earth 2007
10. Marooned 1969
11. Robot & Frank 2012
Do you have your own list of ignored movies?
Some others include: Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970), No Blade of Grass (1970), Eolomea (1972), The Boys from Brazil (1978), The Hamburg Syndrome (1979), Malevil (1981), Android (1982), Anna to the Infinite Power (1983), Born in Flames (1983), Wavelength (1983), The Quiet Earth (1985), Radioactive Dreams (1985), The Manhattan Project (1986), Miracle Mile (1988), Bunker Palace Hotel (1989), Millennium (1989), Timescape (1991), No Escape (1994), Without Warning (1994), Memory Run (1995), Zone 39 (1996), Alien Visitor (1997), Gattaca (1997), Sphere (1998), Furia (1999), The Time Shifters (1999), Maybe (1999), Possible Worlds (2000), Teknolust (2002), Primer (2004), The Cloud (2006), Blindness (2008), Another Earth (2011), Perfect Sense (2011), Timelapse (2014), Listening (2014), Orbita 9 (2017).
Enjoying the Expanse
Some of the best sci-fi on TV, based on the books of James Corey, the joint pen name of authors Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck. It sticks to the science as closely as possible. Emily VanDerWerff of Vox has described the series as a "blend of science fiction and noir-infused detective drama, with a backdrop of political intrigue."
More info here: https://expanse.fandom.com/wiki/The_Expanse_(TV)
Science fiction: Writing the future
A useful timeline of science fiction writing from the BBC, starting with Gulliver's Travels.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/writing-the-future-a-timeline-of-science-fiction-literature/zjfv6v4
Mashable's Top 5 most realistic methods of interstellar travel
Science fiction is full of examples of starships that can zip across the cosmos at speeds that are highly convenient. Some writers have drawn on real science and principles to explain their physics-bending technology. Others just kind of made it up as they went along.
Here are some of the most popular kinds of fictional the faster-than-light (FTL) travel, and how they rate in reality, according to Mashable.
Comparing Sci-fi Empires
In literary science fiction, depictions of galactic empires are common. The trend was kicked off in the 1940s by legendary science fiction writer Isaac Asimov, in his Foundation series. The series focused on the fall of an old galactic empire and the rise of a new one. The foundation books paved the way for other authors to create new fictionalized empires among the stars. In this video, Quinn Howard compares the Galactic Empires of the Foundation universe, The Dune Universe from Frank Herbert's series, and the Hyperion Universe from the science fiction series by Dan Simmons which was published from 1989 to 1997.
