The Sword and Laser discussion
Introduction and welcome thread!
Hi, I'm Princess Nenji.I've been reading Science Fiction and Fantasy for years. My favorite authors are Terry Brooks and David D. Carroll. I am hoping to give my feedback on books I've read, and get input on books I've written. Perhaps I will even get a recommendation or two.
Hi! I'm Jessica-Star and I'm actually putting my first post in a welcome thread for the first time ever...instead of just posting without introducing myself as is my wont.I've been listening to S&L for about 6 months, and finally joined goodreads recently because of all the forum discussion--and because I like the idea of Tom and/or Veronica reading my name on the podcast. I'm a fan of them both and I think it's really cool they do that.
While I love both SF and F I tend to identify most as a fantasy reader. Over the last decade my reading time has been supplanted by playing video games quite often, and the 10-20 books I read a year have usually been rereads. I'm hoping that the discussion here and on the podcast will help encourage me to try new authors and keep my library from stagnating.
So far I've only picked up Ready Player 1, but I'm totally going to jump in on the next pick.
It's been years since I've re-evaluated my favourite authors. I love Lloyd Alexander & Susan Cooper...adore Piers Anthony & Mercedes Lackey. Lest this seem like a popular author lovefest though there are lots of others such as Patricia McKillip or Sheri S Tepper whose works I also love and reread frequently.
Anyway, pleased to meet y'all. I've never posted after a Princess before, that's pretty awesome, so this is already fun. =)
David here. I'm an author as well as an avid reader. Been listening to Veronica and Tom for awhile now. For my two cents, Science Fiction is when the hero wins by breaking the rules. Fantasy is when the hero wins by learning about and embracing his/her heritage.- David
Hi, I'm Tasha. I'm a huge geek, and science fiction is the genre that got me started reading as a small child. I still love it!
Hi all! I'm Jani from currenty very snowy country of Finland.I'm a regular listener of Sword&Laser podcast and managed finally to join goodreads. I am also gamer and science fiction and fantasy fan. My favorite author by far is Terry Pratchett. I really like his works because of witty wording and satirical way of looking The Real World.
Lately I have also started reading and listening to memoirs and historical books.
Huge thanks Tom and Veronica for making SnL podcast.
And hey.. I was wondering if you could as a community put some pressure to publisher of Ready Player One because it is still not available as audiobook in Audible here in Finland (It is available to buy from local bookstore, but price is 67 euros which is about 80 dollars). You have been talking about it soooooo long, but so far I have been unable to listen to it :(
Edit: fixed mistake in availability of audiobook.
Hi, I'm Jukka. Also from up north, Finland.Lately I've entertained myself with fabulous works of
Jim Butcher, Alastair Reynolds and Joe Abercrombie.
Apart from trying to find free time for reading, I'm also trying to find free time for gaming and organising a gaming convention.
Hello, everyone. My name is Penny and I live in the Midwestern US. I discovered this group through Trey Ratcliff's interview with Patrick Rothfuss. I'm really looking forward to participating in this discussion group as few of my friends share my zeal for reading. Thanks Veronica and Tom for making this available.
I enjoy cyberpunk, fantasy, paranormal and historical romance. My two favorite books are written by William Gibson and Ellen Ullman.
Hi all. My name is Nick, but I'm more often known as Nyte. SC, USA resident but born in Ohio and it hasn't left me.Epic Fantasy, and to a much lesser extent Sci-Fi are most often my genres of choice. I'm a pretty quick reader when I get down to it so the more Epic in Scale the better, simply so that I don't have to move on so quickly.
My biggest problems have always been finding new things to read. I've been in a rut for a few years, albeit a comfortable one re-reading the same things over and over. That's the thing I'm looking most for and seem to have found by joining this group. I'm looking for suggestions by others that know there stuff and don't just spout the next most popular book.
I've mostly been reading Wheel of Time and the Dresden files but I'm looking to start branching out again.
So far I'm pleased with how the current read suggestion is going and am hoping I've found a home here.
Nice to meet you all, and thanks for your suggestions. I hope I can return the favor.
I'm Jill from Edinburgh, Scotland. I've always been a big sci fi fan and began reading fantasy a couple of years ago with the Farseer trilogy. After starting Wheel of Time in audiobook format I have started to read more of the huge fantasy books that way and leave the smaller stuff for bedtime reading.Looking forward to being a part of the community - been listening to the podcast since episode 76 and love it.
Hi, I'm Joey, and I've loved fantasy and sci-fi books ever since I was a kid. The first novel I ever read was The Hobbit. Nowadays, I work as a copywriter and will eventually get a book down on the page.I love the podcast; discovered it after a special guest appearance on Tested.com's Oktobercast so I figured I'd join!
I also realized this week that I'm pretty sure I met Veronica way back in college, too, so that's something.
Hello! My name is Rob and I'm a long time fan of swords (Going back to the age of 9 when my cousin helped me make a DnD character) and lasers (going back to age 4 when my dad bought me an XWing and some action figures from that "New" movie everyone was talking about). I'm actually a fan of both Veronica and Tom from their time at CNet (I still very much remember Veronica doing a bit with Tom in one podcast about quantum rabbits made of cheese), though I admit that I haven't listened much to S&L itself. Being honest I found my way into the group as a new GoodReads member because a friend had just posted here on classic games and I though "Oh! A gaming community!" and then read some more and thought further "Oh! A community for a podcast I need to put in my queue."
In the name of full disclosure I'm also budding out a bit as a writer and I will leave it at that rather than shamelessly plugging my debut novel.
Right, so my name is Justin. Been a speculative fiction nutter since my days as a maladjusted preteen in rural NJ. Then I got sucked up into the rave scene in the '90s because I wanted to try living in a real-time human fantasy for a while. I became known as a dance music journalist and still write about that world frequently. If I listed the guys I've interviewed over the years, I'd be here all day, but guys you may have heard of: Daft Punk, Skrillex, deadmau5, Paul Oakenfold, Shpongle, Bassnectar, Kode9, Fatboy Slim, Rusko, Die Antwoord, and so on. As for magazines and suchlike: SPIN, Los Angeles Times, LA Weekly, Alternative Press and suchlike. I also got an interview a few months back by Fast Company when I was blogging on Occupy for a bit, too. Oh, and I'm a burner, too, with a ticket for BM 2012, which makes me luckier than most burners, sad to say.So I just finished up a draft on a book that sort of marries my two interests, and hopefully I can get some work done on revisions this weekend once Maya Jane Coles is out of the way. I am currently interested in cyberpunk and post-cyberpunk authors like Daniel Suarez that possess a lot of technical chops, but can spiral out of this into Neverneverland, as well as guys like Philip K. Dick and Thomas Pynchon that explored altered states in their writing as well. All I ask is that you blow my mind, simple as that.
So there ya go.
Hey, I'm Laura and I found out about this through Felicia Day's YouTube channel (love her). I'm more into the sword stuff than the laser stuff, but I'm willing to try. I used to read a book every week, but something about growing up and working full time and having responsibilities and getting sucked into the computer world slowed me down. Go figure. I would love to get back into reading more books. I'm hoping that finding recommendations here will help me.I'm currently reading "Cetaganda" (Miles Vorkosigan #5) by Lois McMaster Bujold, and listening to "The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman. Next up is "The Lies of Locke Lamora," which was on my list before I saw it's on yours.
Hi, I'm Vicky and I found S&L through Felicia Day's Vaginal Fantasy Hangout. I just listened to the most recent podcast, and I must say I'm pretty excited to keep listening!The type of (and quantity of) books I read vary a ton over time, but I love to discuss and theorize on books so I'm excited about this group because it seems pretty lively!
Hey, I'm Joel. I've heard Veronica talk about the Sword and Laser podcast on Tekzilla.My favorite authors are Neal Stephenson, Robert Jordan and RA Salvatore.
I'm currently reading A Dance with Dragons by George RR Martin.
Hopefully I'll bet some good recommendations for new authors, books and genres here.
Hi, Kyle here. I love the podcast and hope widen my reading. I'm a lot more "laser" orientated, with my favorite authors being Peter F. Hamilton, Alistair Reynolds, Richard K. Morgan, old Greg Bear and old Charles Sheffield. The last fantasy books I liked were from the Coldfire Trilogy by CS Friedman, and that was a long time ago.
Hi everyone, I'm Steve. I've been listening to the last few episodes of the podcast and thought I would join the group to read a few books. Currently reading Swords and Deviltry by Fritz Lieber and expecting a copy of "The Lies of Locke Lamora" to arrive soon.
Hey There! Really enjoying the podcast and these forums. After finding the podcast I read Elantris and mostly enjoyed it and just went back to read Ready Player One and loved it. Now I'm deviating from the assigned reading to re-read The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy as inspired by it being Tom Merritt's "no fudge" recommendation.-Dan
Howdy. I'm Ben, I enjoy a vast variety of books and a friend pointed me in your direction. I enjoy the podcast but don't spend a lot of time discussing things online. At last account, my Kindle had 213 books and my Audible account had 94. I want more.
Hi, I'm Chad. I've been listening to the podcast for a few months but this is my first post here. I'm definitely more laser than sword but I'm willing to give some fantasy a try.
Welcome to all the new members, I am pretty new myself..
Hello everyone, my name is Paige. I'm from Northern California (but sadly, not the cool part. I'm from the plumber crack of the Central Valley. Look up Redding on Google Earth and you'll see what I mean). I've been listening to the podcast for a few weeks now and love it. A female even walking into the science fiction or fantasy section of any bookstore is a very odd thing so I'm happy to have found a little community to share this interest with. I'm new to the sci-fi/fantasy genre, there's so much in the stores and even moreso online I was afraid to pay for something only to be disappointed (college student on a budget, have to be careful with my money) but I can't wait to dig in, and check out on the reccomendations from the group.
Hi all. I'm Jordy. I mostly listen to audiobooks since my main (non-work) reading time occurs while I am folding laundry, washing dishes or pushing my daughter around in her pram. Apologies also to Veronica who read my long email out on the last podcast! Had I realised that would happen, I would have made it shorter! (But at least I didn't totally geek out and include references and a bibliography!)
I'm looking forward to seeing how much I can keep up with the group!
Hi everyone,I found Sword and Laser somehow while searching for podcasts, and have been hooked for quite a few episodes now. I've always loved fantasy and sci-fi, so I feel like this is the perfect group for nerding out about it.
I'm currently reading the second book in the Hunger Games trilogy, as well as slowly making my way through Fellowship of the Ring again.
When I'm not reading, I try to draw stuff and sew things for my Etsy shop. I majored in theatre, and just saw my first live Emilie Autumn concert last week, which was amazing.
Howdy,I just started listening to Sword and Laser I am almost caught up to the most recent episode so I decided it was time to post.
I am hoping to find cool stuff to read here even though I have a huge list of books I already need to read :/
I LOVE Anne McCaffrey I felt Veronica and Tom (sorry is that his name?) pain when they said they almost got to meet her before she died. It was one of my dreams to meet her as well so I know how they felt. I also love Brandon Sanderson. Every book of his I have read I have loved. I might just be too easy to please but I even liked Elantris even if it was a first novel. I even like the cliche strong female characters he uses. I enjoy Melanie Rawn, Jennifer Roberson, Terry Goodkind, and Jennifer Fallon.
I like strong female characters and I normally need just a hint of romance to enjoy a book.
Hellos,My name is RK and been listening to S+L for a bit, I enjoy sci-fi, fantasy, urban fantasy, steampunk, action/adventure novels. In my spare time I enjoy photography, comics, tv/movies, traveling, apple macs and xbox.
Fav authors: Cherie Priest, Tanya Huff, Elizabeth Moon, Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Seanan McGuire (Mira Grant), George RR Martin, Neil Gaiman.
Currently slogging through On board Bassalik Station by David Webber (I'd enjoy it more if it was less info dump and more scenes! Enjoyed the Vatta Series more.)
On the writing front, I've been nanowrimo for a while, started my own writing group and working on finishing my own novel only have 61k to go...
Hey,I'm Adam.
I like to read but I'm terrible at finding new books because I just fall for the artwork on the cover which has lead me to some terrible reads. I like to read science fiction and random books I find, usually at the local Value Village. My favorite authors are George Orwell Kurt Vonnegut and Terry Pratchett
Hello, I'm Sergio.I've been listening to the podcast, lurking and keeping up with the latest assigned reading for several months now. I enjoy fantasy and sci-fi, as well as mystery and thrillers. Most of my "reading" is done by listening to audiobooks while walking the dog or driving to and from work, but I will occasionally read something on my Kindle.
Hi, I'm Jim and I've been listening to S&L for about 2 months. I found the podcast on Twitter from a link from Felicia Day. I just finished Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson and I was planning to read the other two books next, but I decided to put that off in favor of getting The Lies of Locke Lamora for the book club. So far, so good.
My dad got me started on science fiction with Heinlein and fantasy with the Lord of the Rings before I was 10 and I'm really looking forward to doing the same with my son (he's 3, so there's a little time yet). Favorite authors include Lois McMaster Bujold, Neal Stephenson, Terry Prachett, and a bunch of others that I'm too hungry to think of right now.
Hi, Tim here and I have been listening to Sword and Laser for about a year. I kept wanting to keep up with the current reading and finally joined in with Rule 34. Didn't care for it but glad I tried it. I'm loving the Lies of Locke Lamora. I'm looking forward to discovering more good reads.
Hi everyone, I'm Virgil.I read all different genres but of course, sci-fi and fantasy are two of my favorites. I love listening to the podcast to get tips on books I might like to read. Keep up the good work.
Hello, my name is Timi. I am a long time listener of the pod cast but my schedule does not leave very much fee time to participate in decission. I prefer to read with my ears! I an a fan of Jim Butcher, Brandon Sanderson, Patrick Rothfuss.
i have recently started listening again to the sword/laser podcast. i last left off way back in 2009 when the podcast was numerically underage, when the discussion forum was on ning.com, and when the Syfy channel was still the Sci Fi channel. i have to confess i lemmed the last book, "The Eye of the World (Wheel of Time Series #1)", which i blame wholely for my lapse since i felt so very guilty. i have read sci fi since i was in the womb, as my mother is also a huge sci fi reader. both my mother and i prefer the science in our science fiction, although she has recently gone over to the Dark Side with her enthusiasm for Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones. i have been much too distracted lately with bad reality television and pointless facebook games, but i am resolved to get back to reading.
my ultimate single favorite sci fi series? here's a clue: 42.
Hi, I'm Richard A. I've been a loyal listener of the S&L podcast for a year or so, and started reading Fantasy books because of the interview with Patrick Rothfuss. I've read the first two and then moved on to SOIAF...all five. I've just finished Robin Hobb's Assassin's Apprentice, and it seems like a good time to delurk and say Hi, and thanks for the great recommendations.
My usual interest has been a lifelong love of SF. Recently, I've read the first two John Scalzi Old Man's War series. So.... Hello. :)
Hello, my name is SteveI am currently reading "The Ware Tetralogy", in between finishing up my degree. I cut my teeth on PKD "Do androids dream of electric sheep" after seeing Blade Runner as a kid.
I found my way here via Triangulation, which started me listening to the podcast. I like the idea of a book club, so I am going to see if I can keep up with the current choice "The Lies of Locke Lamora". I am interested to see what others have to say and hope to share some of my thoughts.
Hi everyone. Been listening to the podcast for a few weeks now and figured it was time for me to jump on at the goodreads forum. My reading as of late has been very sporadic, I've spent over 6 months trying to finish reading The Black Prism, by Brenton Weeks, only just finished last week. I'm using the latest from Ray Feist, A Crown Imperilled, to hopefully drag me back to the printed world. A few of my other favorite authors, which are typical of fantasy fannatics, Terry Brooks, R. A. Salvatore, and the earlier books of Terry Goodkind (definitely not the repetitive Ayn Rand crap that he thinks is gold). I have recently discovered A. Lee Martinez and Jim Butcher as well.The discovery of the podcast, pointed out by Wil Wheaton in a G+ post, has opened my eyes to so many other authors I'm not sure where to begin, but I'm looking forward to all the future goodreads.
Oh and by the way it's pronounced "sil-in-thar, " if you were unsure.
Hey I'm Gloria. I'm a 'recent' graduate and owner of a masters degree in theological studies but my true love is fantasy. I read a lot mostly on audio books cause i can listen to them at my day job. Favorite book is The Never ending story By Michael Ende. My favorite authors are probably Jane Austen and J.R.R Tolkien. I'm currently rereading the Hobbit after finishing the Silmarillion.
Hi I'm Caribeth, an obsessive crafter and reader. I read a little bit of everything as long as it's interesting or good.
Hi all, so I thought I'd better add my shingle (as so instructed). Lover of most fantasy and science-fiction (satisfies both my left & right brain). Got started with C.S. Lewis, Tolkien & David Eddings, enjoy the sprawling Robert Jordan,
Raymond Feist & Katherine Kerr. Got hooked on space opera of Peter Hamilton (and my wife is constantly trying to hook me into the Starwars world of novels).
There's a wealth of other wonderful stuff that I enjoy, but that'll be enough for now. But as a final note, it is one of the best things to share your love of a world with others (hence why this is so great) but even more so with your partner. Getting lost in a good book is always better with someone by your side, and you don't need to make excuses for staying up late or staying in bed just to read that little more!
Hi, my name is Maike, I'm from Germany, love the podcast and look forward to reading with you all.
Hi,I'm Paul and I've just joined this group. My interest in reading and writing science fiction. My reading has suffered in the last few months because I've been leaning more towards writing more sci-fi novels so I don't have so much time left to read other people's.
Hah, I know that feeling, Paul!Hi, group, I'm new. I'll admit to not having checked out the podcast yet, but since I've only just discovered it, and it's blocked at work, I hope you'll let me off for now. I'll be tuning in when I get home this evening.
I'm Jim, and I'm on a quest to find a sci-fi character I like more than Takeshi Kovacs.
I'm a science fiction fan, amongst many other things, but I find that I limit my own horizons somewhat. I seem reticent to try new things. Joining a few groups like this is meant to break me out of this habit! Wish me luck.
Three weeks ago I published my first novel, which is science fiction with a bit of humour. I won't be crass and link to it! But if you like murderous cyborgs...
Anyway, enough of that for now. The last sci-fi I read was Matter by Banks, and it left me cold. First book in years I've not even finished. Which is odd because I like most of his other stuff. I really want to get my teeth into a massive space opera, with epic space battles and so on, but am all out of ideas for the moment.
So, there you go and here I am. Hola!
Hello Everyone!My name is Josh. I'm a scientist working on drug development for ovarian and breast cancer. My most recent book was the Wool Omnibus Edition by Hugh Howey. It was a great distopian post-apocalyptic novel that I would highly recommend. I can't wait to get involved in some discussions.
- Josh
Hi, I'm Joe. I'm a librarian who buys video and music for a public library collection (nice work if you can get it) and long-time fantasy/sf/video gaming/D&D/White Wolf nerd, and I just discovered the existence of this brilliant group. I recently read The Lies of Locke Lamora so good timing on my part, and am currently in the middle of finishing Margaret Atwood's Oryx and Crake and starting Ekaterina Sedia's Heart of Iron.
Hi all,I started listening to Sword & Laser recently, when Brandon Sanderson tweeted about an episode focused on Warbreaker. I'm not reading along yet, but I try to set aside an hour or so a day dedicated to my current book.
The first books I remember reading are The Last Starfighter and the Xanth series. Since then I've enjoyed pretty much everything I can get my hands on - particular favorites include Asimov, Tolkien, David Weber, Robert Jordan and recently Brandon Sanderson (naturally).
Hey people, my name is Joey! I'm a 19-year-old student from The Netherlands who does most of his reading at night or in the bus ride to the university (it's an hour long, come on I need to do something, right?!). Anyways, my interest in reading dipped in recent years due to television and the internet, but got revived by the amazing A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin (how original, I know). So lately I've been getting more and more into fantasy and that's why I was compelled to check out Sword & Laser when it came up randomly in my Twitterfeed. I greatly enjoyed the last two podcasts and the whole book club idea intrigues me, so that's why I decided to participate when I saw you guys were just getting started on a new book. The Lies of Locke Lamora just showed up in the mail today, so here I am making my first post on the forum. May it be the first of many!
Well, I've just joined the group and I thought I would say hey before I get started on the current book. I've been a big fan of sci-fi and fantasy for as long as I can remember. A few years ago I never seemed to be able to find enough time to read and stopped for some time. Thankfully I was listening to Leo on his Tech Guy show and heard an add for Audible.com and have been hooked ever since.I always have a hard time deciding what book I want to hear next, unless it is a new release in a series I'm already reading, so when I heard about this group I figured it would be a good way to find new books. I recently finished Absolution Gap by Alistair Reynolds, and I am currently waiting for the next book in Sanderson's Stormlight Archive.
Hi I'm SilvanI've been a sci-fi fantasy fan for quite some time, leaning more towards the fantasy though. I've been listening to the podcast for a few months now and decided it was time to say hi. This group has helped me find many great new books to read. Before anywhere I went for book suggestions those suggestions always came up with the same few major books and series in a never-ending loop. So thank you for that and for the great discussions.
Hi I'm Jason. I enjoy reading anything that has an air of wonder about it. I read mainly fantasy, sci-fi and speculative fiction, but am not so concerned about genre, I'm just interested in well told stories. The very first fantasy I read was David Edding's Belgariad series. I have probably read the Belgariad, Mallorean, Elenium and Tamuli series more times than any other books or series. They remain to this day amongs my favorites.
Authors (in and out of genre) I enjoy are R. Scott Bakker (for me, he is the best contemporary fantasy writer around), Clive Barker, Catherynne Valente, NK Jemisin, CS Friedman, Steven Erikson, China Miéville, Salman Rushdie, Leslie Marmon Silko, Haruki Murakami and Umberto Eco
The Sword and Laser
Books mentioned in this topic
Ghosts of the Scattered Kingdoms (other topics)The Sword of Shannara (other topics)
Shadow & Claw (other topics)
A Canticle for Leibowitz (other topics)
A Canticle for Leibowitz (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Wade Garret (other topics)Gene Wolfe (other topics)
John Scalzi (other topics)
Richelle Mead (other topics)
Brandon Sanderson (other topics)
More...
I've been reading all sorts of books, but mostly ancient classics and non-fiction. My interest for SF was triggered recently by listening to the podcasts of Leo Laporte who eventually led me to the S&L podcast. SF I've read/listened to so far includes Neal Stephenson, Peter F. Hamilton and Daniel Suarez. I've enjoyed all of these authors, and I hope to get some good tips on where to go from here.