What do you think?
Notes to a science fiction writer
Book by Bova, Ben
- GenresWritingNonfiction
Hardcover
Published January 1, 1975
About the author
Ben Bova
678 books1,071 followersBen Bova was born on November 8, 1932 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1953, while attending Temple University, he married Rosa Cucinotta, they had a son and a daughter. He would later divorce Rosa in 1974. In that same year he married Barbara Berson Rose.
Bova was an avid fencer and organized Avco Everett's fencing club. He was an environmentalist, but rejected Luddism.
Bova was a technical writer for Project Vanguard and later for Avco Everett in the 1960s when they did research in lasers and fluid dynamics. It was there that he met Arthur R. Kantrowitz later of the Foresight Institute.
In 1971 he became editor of Analog Science Fiction after John W. Campbell's death. After leaving Analog, he went on to edit Omni during 1978-1982.
In 1974 he wrote the screenplay for an episode of the children's science fiction television series Land of the Lost entitled "The Search".
Bova was the science advisor for the failed television series The Starlost, leaving in disgust after the airing of the first episode. His novel The Starcrossed was loosely based on his experiences and featured a thinly veiled characterization of his friend and colleague Harlan Ellison. He dedicated the novel to "Cordwainer Bird", the pen name Harlan Ellison uses when he does not want to be associated with a television or film project.
Bova was the President Emeritus of the National Space Society and a past President of Science-fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA).
Bova went back to school in the 1980s, earning an M.A. in communications in 1987 and a Ph.D. in 1996.
Bova has drawn on these meetings and experiences to create fact and fiction writings rich with references to spaceflight, lasers, artificial hearts, nanotechnology, environmentalism, fencing and martial arts, photography and artists.
Bova was the author of over a hundred and fifteen books, non-fiction as well as science fiction. In 2000, he was the Author Guest of Honor at the 58th World Science Fiction Convention (Chicon 2000).
Hollywood has started to take an interest in Bova's works once again, in addition to his wealth of knowledge about science and what the future may look like. In 2007, he was hired as a consultant by both Stuber/Parent Productions to provide insight into what the world is to look like in the near future for their upcoming film "Repossession Mambo" (released as "Repo Men") starring Jude Law and Forest Whitaker and by Silver Pictures in which he provided consulting services on the feature adaptation of Richard Morgan's "Altered Carbon".
http://us.macmillan.com/author/benbova
Bova was an avid fencer and organized Avco Everett's fencing club. He was an environmentalist, but rejected Luddism.
Bova was a technical writer for Project Vanguard and later for Avco Everett in the 1960s when they did research in lasers and fluid dynamics. It was there that he met Arthur R. Kantrowitz later of the Foresight Institute.
In 1971 he became editor of Analog Science Fiction after John W. Campbell's death. After leaving Analog, he went on to edit Omni during 1978-1982.
In 1974 he wrote the screenplay for an episode of the children's science fiction television series Land of the Lost entitled "The Search".
Bova was the science advisor for the failed television series The Starlost, leaving in disgust after the airing of the first episode. His novel The Starcrossed was loosely based on his experiences and featured a thinly veiled characterization of his friend and colleague Harlan Ellison. He dedicated the novel to "Cordwainer Bird", the pen name Harlan Ellison uses when he does not want to be associated with a television or film project.
Bova was the President Emeritus of the National Space Society and a past President of Science-fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA).
Bova went back to school in the 1980s, earning an M.A. in communications in 1987 and a Ph.D. in 1996.
Bova has drawn on these meetings and experiences to create fact and fiction writings rich with references to spaceflight, lasers, artificial hearts, nanotechnology, environmentalism, fencing and martial arts, photography and artists.
Bova was the author of over a hundred and fifteen books, non-fiction as well as science fiction. In 2000, he was the Author Guest of Honor at the 58th World Science Fiction Convention (Chicon 2000).
Hollywood has started to take an interest in Bova's works once again, in addition to his wealth of knowledge about science and what the future may look like. In 2007, he was hired as a consultant by both Stuber/Parent Productions to provide insight into what the world is to look like in the near future for their upcoming film "Repossession Mambo" (released as "Repo Men") starring Jude Law and Forest Whitaker and by Silver Pictures in which he provided consulting services on the feature adaptation of Richard Morgan's "Altered Carbon".
http://us.macmillan.com/author/benbova
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
December 23, 2024
I saw this 1981 title on my mom's shelf over the holidays, and since I've read plenty of the late author's fiction here and there, I decided to take it down and see what he had to say about the craft from the inside. This book is explicitly aimed at the prospective writer of sci-fi short stories of the type Ben Bova used to screen for publication as editor of the magazines Analog and Omni, but it's overall a decent rough guide to certain key elements that any creator should consider in constructing a speculative tale: character, background (what I'd probably call worldbuilding), conflict, and plot. Each of those four sections also includes an example story by the writer himself and a discussion of how that particular piece illustrates the topic at hand.
Some of this advice strikes me as very helpful indeed, while some feels needlessly restrictive in its myopic definitions. (Most telling is perhaps the author's offhand comment that "a story without conflict is like a meal without meat," which reads quite differently to me in 2024 than he presumably intended it 43 years ago.) It's of course not Bova's fault that the genre has continued to evolve and push boundaries over the decades, but as he does decry the "ludicrously crude" pulp of an earlier era, it seems fair to critique his own purported universal principles in turn.
Still, the author notes how skilled artisans can knowingly break all the normal rules, and I do think this would be a good primer for anyone interested in the basic mechanics of the business. I could certainly name things I've read that might have benefited from just this sort of crash course, so long as its lessons are taken with a large grain of salt.
[Content warning for gun violence.]
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Some of this advice strikes me as very helpful indeed, while some feels needlessly restrictive in its myopic definitions. (Most telling is perhaps the author's offhand comment that "a story without conflict is like a meal without meat," which reads quite differently to me in 2024 than he presumably intended it 43 years ago.) It's of course not Bova's fault that the genre has continued to evolve and push boundaries over the decades, but as he does decry the "ludicrously crude" pulp of an earlier era, it seems fair to critique his own purported universal principles in turn.
Still, the author notes how skilled artisans can knowingly break all the normal rules, and I do think this would be a good primer for anyone interested in the basic mechanics of the business. I could certainly name things I've read that might have benefited from just this sort of crash course, so long as its lessons are taken with a large grain of salt.
[Content warning for gun violence.]
Like this review?
--Throw me a quick one-time donation here!
https://ko-fi.com/lesserjoke
--Subscribe here to support my writing and weigh in on what I read next!
https://patreon.com/lesserjoke
--Follow along on Goodreads here!
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/6...
--Or click here to browse through all my reviews!
https://lesserjoke.home.blog
September 27, 2014
Initially, I only picked up Ben Bova's "Notes to a Science Fiction Writer" because I recognized his name, having just recently picked up his "Mars" novel, and found his writing style to be to be enough to my liking. He didn't inspire anything deep within me, and didn't necessarily make me want to emulate him as a writer, but I thought he was enjoyable to read, and technically sound enough to please my rather odd pickiness -- he did just enough right, linguistically, to hold my attention. So, when I was browsing my local library, looking for writing workshop books to help improve my style and focus while writing novels, and I came across his name in the mix, I was already impressed enough with him to give the book a try.
Am I ever glad I did. The whole thing reads very easily, as if he, himself, is sitting right across from you and speaking the words you're reading from across his desk, feet up, and casually gesturing this way and that while he talks. Bova breaks the book up into four main parts, giving the discussion an easy flow to it, and breaks each part up into a section on theory, and a section on practice, using one of his own short stories in between the two sub-sections to illustrate his point. Not only is his advise sound, and pace easy to keep up with, but the short stories he chose to accent the book are worth reading all on their own.
The only complaint that I might have is how it doesn't really address any of the issues of writing a novel, or anything of greater length than a story of 5,000 words; however, Bova says, from right off the bat, that the entire purpose of this book is a matter of "self defense" to try and lessen the number of bad short stories that land on his desk in the slush pile he has to read for for his SciFi magazine -- the whole point is to focus on short stories. While yes, the entire purpose of picking it up was in helping me in writing something of substantially greater length, the advise he gives is worth reading regardless, and the short story specific suggestions on concision and focus is easily enough to extrapolate into a novels that I feel this book is well worth the read of any upstart writer, hoping to hone his or her craft.
When I picked this book up and walked out of the library, I sat down and read all the way through the first section in one sitting. By the end of the next day, I'd finished the whole thing. For anyone hoping to gain the advise of an editor and writer, Ben Bova's "Notes to a Science Fiction Writer" is well worth your time.
Am I ever glad I did. The whole thing reads very easily, as if he, himself, is sitting right across from you and speaking the words you're reading from across his desk, feet up, and casually gesturing this way and that while he talks. Bova breaks the book up into four main parts, giving the discussion an easy flow to it, and breaks each part up into a section on theory, and a section on practice, using one of his own short stories in between the two sub-sections to illustrate his point. Not only is his advise sound, and pace easy to keep up with, but the short stories he chose to accent the book are worth reading all on their own.
The only complaint that I might have is how it doesn't really address any of the issues of writing a novel, or anything of greater length than a story of 5,000 words; however, Bova says, from right off the bat, that the entire purpose of this book is a matter of "self defense" to try and lessen the number of bad short stories that land on his desk in the slush pile he has to read for for his SciFi magazine -- the whole point is to focus on short stories. While yes, the entire purpose of picking it up was in helping me in writing something of substantially greater length, the advise he gives is worth reading regardless, and the short story specific suggestions on concision and focus is easily enough to extrapolate into a novels that I feel this book is well worth the read of any upstart writer, hoping to hone his or her craft.
When I picked this book up and walked out of the library, I sat down and read all the way through the first section in one sitting. By the end of the next day, I'd finished the whole thing. For anyone hoping to gain the advise of an editor and writer, Ben Bova's "Notes to a Science Fiction Writer" is well worth your time.
March 28, 2012
This was good. Fun & useful, like a little chat with the author. He makes some points about different aspects of writing, then includes a story of his, and then comments on how that story did what he said. The stories are fun reads by themselves, and the commentary helpful. A good read for potential writers.
June 21, 2010
This is a pretty old book, 1981. I read it when I was in grad school and just beginning to think about writing and trying to seel stuff. I found it helpful although nothing that really knocked my socks off.
February 7, 2014
Bova has a cool way to explain how to write - he uses some of his own stories as examples. That means he actually knows why various choices were made in the plotting, setting, characters, et cetera. It makes for a very clear presentation.
August 29, 2015
I've been pondering getting back into some creative writing - it's been since early in college, but, at that time it was a motivation for me to transfer to a particular school. Maybe it's time to dust out the cobwebs?
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews