A few years I wrote a short story along comic lines, that I called “Bubba Builds a Spaceship.” I passed it around at a writers’ group I where I attended two sessions and then left. I sent it to a writer friend, who recommended a total re-write along very different lines, with more drama. Instead, I turned it into a short screenplay, and changed the title to “Mars, the Redneck Planet.” I put it away and did nothing. Tonight my wife saw a trailer on TV for this movie, and said, “Anders, they made a movie out of your story!” I watched the trailer again, and it’s eerily similar, although this is a drama with a few funny lines, and my story was intended as humorous and totally unrealistic from the beginning.
Page 56 of 81
I just placed an order for this book by Ken MacLeod, which collects some of his shorter work, both fiction and non-fiction. NESFA Press runs a nice business, but the cover looks a little low-budget this time.
The newsletter is back from the printer, and I’m busy attaching labels and stamps to mail it out over the next couple of days. I’ve already started collecting articles and writing reviews for the next issue, due out some time in April.
If you want to review a book or movie for Prometheus, please send me an email at editor@lfs.org – yes, in the internet age there are still a few print publications around.
I read last week that there are 140 million member of MySpace. I’ve only visited the site to listen to a pre-release version of a Robin Guthrie song. I believe David Louis Edelman’s piece is a major reason I see no use in joining the site. That, and I’d probably end up with zero friends and go jump off a bridge. Ha.
To hide my shame at not knowing how to link to YouTude directly, a nod to the fellow ERB fans over at Rebels of Mars.
This has to be The. Worst. Movie. Adaptation. Of. A. Book. Ever.
The fact that this was filmed in 1976, one year before Star Wars, speaks volumes for the horrible state of social effects at the time, but even the actors look woefully miscast.
I’m messing around with building an Amazon AStore. I found that I’ve never been able to keep up with linking to Amazon when I mention books, so instead I found I can create a single site with several categories. While still under construction, I have added titles for all past Prometheus Award winners, as well as the 2007 preliminary list of best novel nominees. Since a group of judges whittle down this list to five or six, and I know more novels are currently under consideration*, here’s a chance to see the list of early nominated books. I’m embarrassed to say I have read only two of the books of the current nine. I’m going to re-work this site over the next few days before the main categories are set in stone, and also I plan to add remarks to as many selections as possible.
*Full disclosure – I am not a member of the judges committee, although I do vote on the final selection.
Author Tamara Wilhite, whose fiction has appeared in Prometheus in both past issues and the forthcoming January 2007 issue, has a short available from Amazon.com in their Amazon Shorts program. Her story, Natural Talent
The January 2007 issue of Prometheus has been shipped to the printer, and should be in the mail to subscribers and members of the Libertarian Futurist Society some time next week. Contents include a review of the Heinlein audio plays from the Atlanta Radio Theatre Company, fiction by Tamara Wilhite, a review of John Scalzi’s The Ghost Brigades, a review of Jack Williamson’s The Humanoids, a review in poetic form of Sinclair Lewis’s novel, It Can’t Happen Here, a review of Brad Linaweaver’s political broadside, Post-Nationalism, and photos from the FreFan party at the 2006 WorldCon in Los Angeles.
If you’re interested in writing anything for Prometheus, please contact me at editor@lfs.org – the next issue is planned for April 2007, and I expect this one to be full of book reviews. Your contributions are most welcome.
L. Neil Smith talks about sequels to books that his fans dearly hopes he gets around to writing. I counted at least 15 planned books, which is an ambitious outline of ideas.
Sad but not unexpected, given his recent health issues. Robert Anton Wilson, author of numerous books and articles, including Illuminatus! (which was co-written by Robert Shea) died earlier today.
