The Sword and Laser discussion
Introduction and welcome thread!
Hi, I'm Sean. Am a fan of the podcast and looking forward to reading along. I have varied tastes in all kinds of genre but always seem to come back to Si-Fi & Fantasy.
Hi, I'm Thaddeus, but most often go by Ted.I've been a huge fantasy and Sci-Fi fan since I was in jr. high. I am more into fantasy than Sci-Fi most of the time, but I do need a dose of Asimov or books like the first Rama from time to time.
I have had the bug to be a writer since just before high school. For most of the time since then, real life has gotten in the way, but last year I decided I was done putting things off. I put aside the novels I had been working on and started a new project, which has turned into my first published book: Mother's Curse.
Felicia Day's new site, Geek and Sundry brought me to the Sword & Laser group and I must say I am enjoying the group and look forward to being an active member.
-Ted
Hello, I'm Dustin. I also go by unicronQ. I live in rural Nebraska, and like to read Science Fiction short stories and novels. I don't really have a favorite book or author. I really like Star Trek novels, Isaac Asimov, and Neil Gaiman. I read Asimov's magazine and Analog Science Fiction and Fact. I'm a really slow reader, so I'm not sure how much I'll be able to participate. I'm kind of scared of people too, but I'm trying to learn to socialize more.
Hello, I'm Voxus. I've been a long time listener/lurker of Sword and Laser. I love Scifi and Fantasy. My favorite books/series/authors at the moment are The Void Trilogy,Night Angel Trilogy and anything by Richard K. Morgan and Joe Abercrombie. Just finished book 2 of the Locke Lamora series and can't wait for the next one. Ok back to lurker for me! :)
Found the sword and laser site from geek and sundry channel on YouTube. Thought I would try the book club and see how it went. I've always loved reading but I've never done much of the social media thing so I guess I'll see how combining the two goes.
Hi, I'm Travis (Jyrbain is my natural username for various internet forums)Though I'm not very well read, I love to read!
Some of my favourite authors include Terry Goodkind, Mercedes Lackey, Richard Dawkins, & David Eddings.
Like Adrian, I found out about Sword and Laser from Tekzilla. I'm really happy with the books you guys are introducing to me, I never would have read them if it wasn't for Sword and Laser! Keep up the awesome work guys, and I look forward to next Monday's podcast!
Hello, my name is Jocelyn I have listen to the audiopodcast of Sword and Laser for awhile now and joined goodreads just a short time ago. I look forward to the new video updates from geek and sundry. I am currently re reading the discworld series by Terry Prachett and have been a fantasy and science fiction reader since I was a child.
Hi, My name is Jack and I'm a read-a-holic.The first real book I ever read was Lord of the Rings and that pretty much set the tone of my reading tastes for life. Which is to say I read mostly fantasy, with the occasional sci-fi thrown in to add variation. You might say it was something of a gateway book for me.
Currently my favorite author is Patrick Rothfuss; anyone as talented as he is should be left on a mountain at birth so the rest of us don't look quite so bad by comparison, lol.
By day I'm a geek/IT Engineer in a team of 20 people who look after more than 5000 users and 700 servers over more than 500 networks. IT's a pain (Pun intended.).
By night I'm just a Geek...
Anyway.
I should go.
Jack.
Hi! I'm Karen. I have been a avid reader my entire life. I found this group through the Vaginal Fantasy group. I have been a fan of fantasy for a long time, along with Paranormal Romance and many other genres. Lately I have been enjoying more SciFi in tv & movies so I am excited to add more of that to my reading. LOVED the Lies of Locke Lamora and enjoying the Magician right now.
Good afternoon, I'm Z. I currently work for both a CPA firm in Scottsdale, Arizona and in accounting for a hotel in Chandler, Arizona.Of the two, I generally prefer fantasy to science fiction, though I have a healthy appreciation for both. In terms of specific authors, I have a love/hate relationship with George R.R. Martin that goes back probably fifteen years. I stumbled on to Patrick Rothfuss last year on the recommendation of a friend and The Name of the Wind would be my favorite book if it weren't for its sequel. For some controversial opinions, I enjoy Tolkien and appreciate that his work was ground-breaking but still feel that it is highly overrated and I just finished the Hunger Games trilogy and thought it was utterly terrible.
At the moment, I'm about to pick up The Magicians for the Sword and Laser discussion and Neuromancer for #1book140. Both are books I've been meaning to pick up for some time (Neuromancer in particular has been a gaping hole in my repertoire), so I'm excited to get started on them. I should have some time to make a dent tonight! It's nice to meet you all.
z
Hi, i'm Juan.Not much to say besides the fact that i'm a
science-fiction/fantasy addict: gaming, books, anime, manga, role-playing... pretty much everything pick my interest
I am an up and coming writer (I hope) named Doug Dandridge, who is self pubbing on the net while still pursuing that elusive major publishing contract. Six books out now and more coming. This looks like my kind of place, like minded people who share ideas about the literature of the fantastic. I am also very well read, and will be posting lots of reviews and ratings on Goodreads, while hopefully picking up some recommendations on new reads. I see reading as part of my job, as well as one of the great enjoyments of life. My website has a lot of information on me and my work, http://dougdandridge.net . Feel free to drop in if you want. Promotion is not my main purpose on this site.
Hi, I'm Jacy. I read all kinds of stuff. I love sci fi and fantasy. If a story takes me to a new world or an awesome adventure I can't help but read it over and over again. I haven't been reading a lot of sci fi recently...got caught up in UF, so hopefully I'll find some must reads here.
Hello! I'm Jeremy - I found this group via the Geek and Sundry initiative and am very excited to be a part!Hoping to broaden my reading habits with the group. Enjoying The Magicians immensely!
Hey everyone, I'm Bradley.Been listening to the podcast for quite a while, but this is the first time I've actually been reading the book that was chosen (The Magicians). As much as I like sci-fi and fantasy, I don't tend to read as much of it now as I used to when I was younger for whatever reason.
Of the two genres I'd probably say I'm more of a Sword guy. Big fan of George R. R. Martin's SoIaF, although I don't think the last two have been quite as good as the first three. I do like sci-fi, but for some reason I prefer it in movie/television form. Off the top of my head, the last sci-fi book I read was The Fall of Hyperion by Dan Simmons.
So, I guess that's me and my reading habits. I'm look ing forward to getting to know everyone!
Yo.I'm Kirby, and I'm a fantastiholic.
I have a hundred thousand word a week habit, so I've usually got something interesting I picked up at the used bookstore sitting beside me. I'll read pretty much any story, as long as its well-written, with a preference towards heroic quests and melodrama played out with swords/fireballs/lasers.
My favorite book is probably the excellent, if hilariously dense, Johnathan Strange & Mr. Norrel by Susannah Clarke.
So, see you all around.
Greetings! Harold here. I'm 95% sword, 5% laser. My interest in the realms of fantasy probably stems from my time playing Magic: The Gathering and D&D back in high school, which quickly found me reading The Hobbit and the Redwall series (I actually never read the rest of the Lord of the Rings saga until years later).
More recently, however, I have been entranced by George RR Martin's Song of Ice and Fire series and German-style board games, thus resurrecting my fantastical fervor.
Hello Sword & Laser! I'm fan of the podcast. I've worked my way through most of the back catelogue and I'm now up to date.I typically fall on the Laser side of the spectrum.
Hey, my name is Rich B. Knight. I love sci-fi (Think Asimov more than Bradbury) and modern fantasy. I've actually written a adult fantasy novel and I'm trying to get it out there to agents. Wish me luck.
Remy wrote: "Hi, I'm Remy.I've been a sci-fi/fantasy reader ever since my third-grade teacher introduced me to Lord of the Rings. When I'm not reading books I haven't read in a while or books for the club, ..."
Wow. You read Lord of the Rings back in there third grade? I wish I went to your school.
Hi, Mark here, I am a big fan of sci-fi/fantasy and historical fiction. I am brand new and this would be my first post. I am on board with The Magicians for this month, never read it or anything by that author so we will see how it goes.
Hi, name's James. Fan of the podcast, love sci-fi/fantasy duh! Why else would i be here right?!!? How's that for an intro?
Hi I'm Tyler.I've been reading fantasy novels since junior high when a friend loaned me Dragons of Autumn Twilight. I haven't looked back since.
These days I will read anything by Brandon Sanderson or Terry Goodkind. Also enjoying Patrick Rothfuss.
My more recent discoveries are David Eddings, and Glen Cook.
Right now I'm re-reading Robert Jordan's wheel of time series in anticipation of the final novel. I've got A Game of Thrones on my to-read list as well.
I'm hoping to expand my sci-fi list some. I've read Frank Herbert's Dune books and Timothy Zahn's Heir to the empire series, along with a few others, but Ilooking forward to finding more with this group.
Hello Sword & Laser Nation, I'm Kevin. Just joined the group after redirecting from the Geek & Sundry channel and the podcast channel. I've only been on GoodReads a few weeks and am always looking for new reading recommendations. So far I am enjoying the podcast and looking forward to the upcoming video and have already added a few books to read from listening to the podcast.
I love Felicia Day since she joined Eureka. I follow her on Twitter and she's had been hyping Geek and Sundry. I'm watching G4 and she was on !! and she mentioned the Sword & Laser on Geek and Sundry, so here I am. Been part of Goodreads for over a year now, Love It!!
Hi all! I'm Alexandria- brand-new to Goodreads! Subscribed to the podcast after Veronica was featured on the first "VF" G+ hangout w Felicia Day, etc. The Romance genre they discuss in VF isn't really my thing, but all those women are super smart and funny so it was still entertaining- and, hey! It brought me to S&L, so yay! I'm currently reading Song of Ice & Fire Book 3, w Buffy Season 9 and the new Angel & Faith series (comics) peppered in for fun. I've got The Magicians and The Blind Assassin on deck. Finally, filed under "not recreational in the least bit," I'm studying for the July CA bar, so I've got tons of bar study books to digest! Escapism > Bar Study
Hello. I am Cleveland from Oklahoma. Found out about this group from Geek and Sundry. It looks intriguing. I am excited to be a part of it.
Hi I'm Lorraine I have been on goodreads for years but am new to sword Nd laser. I love reading series and recently finished Dresden files, song of fire and ice and Gail carriger's vampire series. Currently involved in Robert Charles Wilson's books.....I have a tendency to start with an author and read everything out there by them. Moving on to neal Stephenson next.
Anxious for a good book discussion and have thoroughly enjoyed sword and laser online so excited to be here too!
Heya everyone, I'm Ana from Serbia. :)I've only discovered geekandsundry channel few days ago through vlogbrothers, and I decided to follow all of the shows on it, as I'm a total YouTube geek (subscribed to more than 820 channels atm). I've already had goodreads account since last December, so it came in handy. ;) I'd like to invite all the geeks to befriend me here, and especially the Nerdfighters.I'm very into both fantasy and sci-fi in all aspects, reading and writing included. Lately I've started reading more books in English as opposed to my native language (I bought a whole bunch of them on my last year's trip to London), and I'm surprised to find reading them incredibly easy. My favourite authors include J.K.Rowling, Andrzej Sapkowski, John Green, Philip Pullman, Sergey Lukyanenko, Zoran Živković and many others.
Looking forward to whichever nerdiness this book group brings! :)
Hi, I'm Doug...I've been a scifi and fantasy ready all of my life, although I really have gotten out of the habit of reading for fun, and spend a lot of time reading tech and VFX-related books.
I'm hoping this forum, and trying to keep up with the show, will get me back into the habit of reading for fun, and trying to read at least one new title a month...
My favorite authors: Heinlein, Asimov, Frank Herbert, George R.R. Martin, and Jean Shepherd (no, not a scifi or fantasy writer, but an amazing story teller in the oral narrative style.)
Hey all..I'm Matt, and I imagine like most of you, my 'to-read' list grows faster than I can read the damn things.
It all started with Terry Pratchett back in the day, then I took a hiatus from reading until a friend lent me David Gemmell's Echoes of the Great Song a few years ago. Since then I've tried to immerse myself with a mix of fantasy and sci-fi, with the aim of slowly getting through the ridiculous back catalogue of amazing fiction.
My most recent reads include the A Song of Ice and Fire series in one pretty heavy hit, in time for A Dance With Dragons last summer. Introducing myself to Scott Lynch's Gentleman Theives, and, with a sprinking of some classics, throwing myself into the vastness of Iain M. Banks's Culture novels.
And that's just one of the many tips of the fiction ice-berg out there.
Also I am a strong follower of the Do Judge A Book By Its Cover philosophy, which led me to most of the above.
Hi I'm Vanessa. I discovered Sword and Laser through Geek and Sundry/Vaginal Fantasy Group. In my reading I tend to jump between fantasy and romance and the in between. My favorite fantasy authors include:George R. R. Martin, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Margaret Atwood, Jim Butcher and a newer author Kevin Hearne.
I look forward to finding new fantasy/sci-fi to read and I am currently working on The Magicians
Ana wrote: "Heya everyone, I'm Ana from Serbia. :)I've only discovered geekandsundry channel few days ago through vlogbrothers, and I decided to follow all of the shows on it, as I'm a total YouTube geek (subs..."Hi Ana!
What's the genre field like in Serbia?
Have you read the English translations of Zoran Živković's work? Just wondering how it compares to the original text, and what you think of it.
Hi, I'm Pete, and I've been a SciFi&Fantasyaholic for over 30 years. It has been 7 days since my last read (just finished Paolini's Inheritance series).Found out about Sword & Laser via TWIT.
My preferences are much more sword than laser but happy to devour both. Favourite authors include Raymond Feist, Elizabeth Moon, Anne McCaffrey, and Lawrence Watt-Evans.
To feed my reading habit I work in IT as an architect.
When not working or reading, I enjoy tennis, trivia, presenting at conferences, and playing D&D (though not all at the same time).
I'm married with 2 kids, and live in South Australia.
Hello everyone, Just found S&L, and am very glad I did. I am an avid sci-fi and fantasy reader, and have been for nearly 35 years.
Favorite authors include Chabon, Fforde, Vonnegut, Sanderson, Martin, Heinlein.
Hi all, i'm Dan. Just discovered the sword and laser podcast and decided to sign up here as a result. My favourite authors include Robert Jordan, Terry Pratchett, Brandon Sanderson, Douglas Adams and Jim Butcher.
I am currently reading A Storm Of Swords by George RR Martin.
Hi, I'm Agatha.Currently reading Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency. My favourite authors include Douglas Adams (evidently), Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman, Robert A. Heinlein, Lois McMaster Bujold, Irvine Welsh; to name just a few.
I'm subscribed to Geek&Sundry over on youtube, which is what brought me here. Of course.
Hello, I'm just a guy who occasionally reads voraciously... I found this group via the whole Geek&Sundry thing but I was on Good Reads prior.I like reading sci-fi and fantasy, but usually any fantasy is modern fantasy or fantasy with a sci-fi feel or whatever it is Terry Pratchett writes. I'm ambivalent on the whole "Swords and Sorcery" thing... I like swords and magic and Dungeons & Dragons style games well enough but just seem to get bored when I read books about them.
Hi, I'm Casey.I will read pretty much anything that looks interesting and that I'd think I'd like. I found this through the Geek and Sundry YouTube channel. (I did hear about it through the Vaginal Fantasy hang-out, though).
Hi everyone, just came here via Geek and Sundry, and prior via G+.
I'm a fantasy addicted, even if recently I'm getting a little bit away from the classic genre, trying to find new stories, new streams.
And I'm also exploring sci-fi, trying to catch up with all that I lost in the past. Long way to go...
Lars here! I know nothing about this Sword and Laser business, but I like the name and the premise! Hope to pick up tips for less well known books here :)
Hi all, I'm Vicki - I grew from being the kid who would rather sit in the corner reading about Narnia than play with the other kids, to being the adult who walks to the train station reading and hopefully not bumping into people :)I grew up in Australia (although now I live in Canada), and suffered greatly from the limited selection of books available there. I'm loving my Kindle and the sheer volume of authors and books that are available, and loving that clubs like this exist to introduce me to new ones. My favourite book recently has been Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson.
Hi, I'm Rob.I used to own a bookstore until Amazon killed it.
That being said, I actually didn't read as much as I should have when I had the bookstore. So I'm making up for lost time now.
I'm awaiting Tricked. I think Kevin Hearne has single-handedly re-sparked my interest in reading again.
Seeking out new reads is a fun adventure. I don't plan on stopping again.
Hi everyone, I'm Aline from Mexico, here (as expected, probably) thanks to Geek & Sundry. I'll pretty much read antyhing you put in front of my face (including cereal box labels), though I've always gravitated towards scifi and fantasy. Some authors I enjoy are: Douglas Adams, Margaret Atwood, Orson Scott Card, Philip Pullman, Philip K. Dick, Ursula K. LeGuin and Kurt Vonnegut.
I'm currently making my way though A Clash of Kings and thoroughly enjoying it so far.
Hi I'm Joe. I saw the first video episode had Scott Sigler and talked about Lev Grossman. Two great authors so I had to join. I am currently reading Collin's Mockingjay and Sigler's The All-Pro.
Hey everybody. I'm Mark. I've been listening to the podcast for a couple of months. The podcasts and group discussions are a goldmine of good suggestions for new books to read.I'm looking forward to watching the video version even though I always seem to be playing catch-up with the books. I don't have a copy of The Magicians yet, but it's on it's way.
Hey, I'm Richard, I am definitely a Sword, love the fantasy, I do like reading Sci-Fi but my book shelf is mostly fantasy. I am just finishing reading Trudi Canavans The Ambassadors Mission, and am going to jump straight into the Rogue, the next book in the series, so will be a little behind everyone with respect to The Magicians, but am very excited about reading it.
Found you through Geek and Sundry and have listened to the last couple of weeks of podcasts which are awesome, and thought that the first Youtube show was great.
Carry on the good work :)
Hi there!I'm Amelia. Happy to find a book club community reading books I love to read :D
Joining in with The Magicians and enjoying it heartily so far.
I'd call myself a laser with a small sword chaser. Good to be here!
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)
More...
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...
Lemme throw some links in here to give you an idea where my head is... Snow Crash, Red Mars, Assassin's Apprentice, Pandaemonium, and go ahead and add in the entire Horus Heresy saga while you're at it.
I've never been part of an actual book club synchronised reading event type thing, so considering popping off to pick up The Magicians just now...