Science Fiction & Fantasy

Do you dream of writing tales that pull readers into extraordinary realms? The Writer's Digest Guide to Science Fiction & Fantasy gives you everything you need to build a fantastic world, inhabit it with original and believable characters, and create an authentic and enthralling story.

Two complete books in one, this comprehensive guide includes invaluable and timeless advice for writing and selling speculative fiction from best-selling author Orson Scott Card's How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy, as well as world-building information and instruction from the indispensable classic The Writer's Complete Fantasy Reference.

You'll discover:

• how to wield story elements that "define" the science fiction and fantasy genres
  
  
• ways to build, populate and dramatize fantastic new worlds
  
  
• how to construct compelling stories by developing ideas, characters, and events that keep readers turning pages
  
  
• historically accurate information about world cultures, legends, folklore and mysticism
  
  
• how to authentically portray the rituals of magic and witchcraft
  
  
• in-depth descriptions of mythological creatures, fantasy races, clothing, weapons, armor, and more

Unique visions and astonishments—new stories by:

Tobias S. Buckell and Karl Schroeder
Cory Doctorow
Neil Gaiman
Kathleen Ann Goonan
Alastair Reynolds
Michael Swanwick

Last year's best short-form SF—selected by acclaimed, award-winning editors and anthologists David G. Hartwell and Kathryn Cramer—offers stunning new extrapolations on what awaits humankind beyond the next dawn. The art of the story is explored boldly and provocatively in this powerful new collection of Year's Best speculative fiction.

This lively and authoritative guide will app eal to both newcomers and connoisseurs of the genre. Informa tive and readable, Pringle''s choices focus on landmarks by k nown artists and also unearth the talents of those that are lesser known. '

Zeb Poole is transported to the fair world, a place that is half magic and Celtic myth. In the city of Neckerdam, a mad genius destroys the city's skyscrapers, and plots the death of the city's protector, Doc Sidhe. And in a land that would be Germany in Zeb's world, a dictator begins a campaign of racial purity that is chillingly familiar.

"Science Fiction & Fantasy Book Review" was founded in 1979 to provide comprehensive coverage of all the major and minor books being released in the genre at that time. This was the golden era of SF publishing, with a thousand titles (old and new) hitting the stands and the bookshelves each and every year. From the older classics to the newest speculative fiction, this was the period when the best and the brightest shined forth their talents. SF&FBR included reviews by writers in the field, by amateur critics, and by littérateurs and University professors. Over a thousand books were covered during the single year of publication, many of them having been reviewed no where else, before or since. The January 1980 issue includes a comprehensive index of all the works featured during the preceding year. This reprint will be a welcome addition to the literature of science fiction and fantasy criticism.

The first comprehensive critical study of hard science fiction, this book reveals how the term hard science fiction originated, and how arguments about its range and nature have unfolded. Westfahl shows that hard science fiction is generally characterized by the author's extreme concern for scientific accuracy and logic. Identifying two characteristic forms of hard science fiction, Westfahl closely examines several representative works: Arthur C. Clarke's A Fall of Moondust, Hal Clement's Mission of Gravity, and Charles Sheffield's Between the Strokes of Midnight. This book offers new insights into hard science fiction and provides a wealth of information about what members of the science fiction community have said about this relatively recent genre.

Science/Fiction Collections offers different views and attitudes toward Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature and descriptions of a variety of collections. Written during a time when Science Fiction and Fantasy writings had just gained widespread popularity, it offers suggestions and considerations for approaching any special collection dealing with a relatively new field.

• ISBN13: 9780312044503
• Condition: New
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The collaborative efforts of Ellen Datlow (horror) and Terri Windling (fantasy) are becoming something of a legend, as year after year they deliver the best horror and fantasy short fiction in a fat (500 double-length pages) anthology that avoids pigeonholes with its mingled, unlabeled sample of the two genres. As in previous years, this volume includes more than 100 pages of summaries about the year 1997 in horror and fantasy publishing, horror and fantasy in the media, and comics. The fiction includes 18 stories and 8 poems with just Terri Windling's initials, and 18 stories and 1 poem with Ellen Datlow's initials, with some (presumably dark fantasy) that are tagged by both.

Even more than usual, Ellen Datlow's horror selections introduce a remarkable variety of types of stories. One of the best tales is Molly Brown's "The Psychomantium," about a mirror that allows alternative time lines to intersect, creating double fates for the characters. "The Skull of Charlotte Corday" (photos included) by Leslie Dick takes an essayistic approach to a famous female assassin and some creepy details in the history of sexual surgery. Douglas Clegg's "I Am Infinite, I Contain Multitudes" is a striking body-horror tale that was nominated for a Bram Stoker Award. Christopher Harman, P.D. Cacek, Joyce Carol Oates, and Vikram Chandra contribute old-fashioned ghost stories. Gary Braunbeck's "Safe" is reminiscent of the best of Stephen King in its portrayal of realistic horror in a small town. Michael Chabon's "In the Black Mill" more than proves that Lovecraftian horror can transcend shallow pastiche. And other horror notables--such as Michael Cadnum, Christopher Fowler, Caitlín Kiernan, Stephen Laws, Kim Newman, Norman Partridge, and Nicholas Royle--make appearances.

Terri Windling's selections include familiar fantasy names such as Peter Beagle, Charles de Lint, Karen Joy Fowler, and Jane Yolen, and famous genre-crossers such as Ray Bradbury, Howard Waldrop, and Jack Womack. She also provides welcome space for fantasy poetry--charming pieces with images of the Trickster Coyote, Sheela Na Gig, and a mermaid, and titles like "Coffee Jerk at the Gates of Hell." The Pulitzer Prize-winning Steven Millhauser contributes an enchanting tale that originally appeared in the New Yorker. Other tales are inspired by an intriguing range of sources: Gulliver's Travels, Marilyn Monroe, the Scottish legend of the Sineater, the art of glass blowing, Aztec myth, and ancient Jewish lore.

There's no better way to take in the best of these two genres, both for the great selections and the ample pointers to 1997's novels, magazines, art, movies, and comics that you may not have heard about. --Fiona Webster

Roger Zelazny's Chronicles of Amber have earned their place as all-time classics of imaginative literature. Now here are all ten novels, together in one magnificent omnibus volume. Witness the titanic battle for supremacy waged on Earth, in the Courts of Chaos, and on a magical world of mystery, adventure, and romance.

Roger Zelazny's books have three things in common: a flawed hero who sometimes fails, endlessly surprising plot twists, and a blend of lyricism, literary allusions, and sly puns that makes the pages fly. The Great Book of Amber, collecting all 10 Amber novels, is vintage Zelazny. Despite some irritating typographical errors, it's invaluable for anyone who wants to read or reread the tales of Corwin and his son, Merlin.

Corwin is a prince of Amber, the "immortal city from which every other city has taken its shape." All other worlds, including Earth, are shadows of that reality. Corwin has spent centuries on Earth as an amnesiac. But when someone in the family tries to kill him there, Corwin begins a search for his past. He quickly learns that his family has some very unusual powers. They can travel between Amber, its shadows, and Chaos by manipulating reality; use magical playing cards to communicate and travel instantaneously; and are able to walk the Pattern that created Amber. Corwin regains his memory, solves the mystery of his father Oberon's disappearance, and fulfills his destiny--only to disappear into Chaos.

Merlin searches for Corwin and his destiny as a son of both Amber and the Courts of Chaos. His story parallels Corwin's, answering many questions about Amber, Chaos, and the next generation in the family.

Many readers have complained that the series goes on too long and the ending is disappointing. None, however, would deny that it's filled with fascinating ideas, complex characters, and action-adventure. Don't miss a chance to make up your own mind. --Nona Vero