iMeme

[minxy]

Seen most recently at surrealis's place:

Everyone has things they blog about. Everyone has things they don't blog about. Challenge me out of my comfort zone by telling me something I don't blog about, but you'd like to hear about, and I'll write a post about it. Ask for anything: latest movie watched, last book read, political leanings, thoughts on something, favorite type of underwear, explain an interest, a fandom obsession, pre-fandom obsessions, whatever.

I'll answer in blog posts this week, I should imagine.

Also, if you, for some reason, are not bursting with questions about what experiments I ran today or what the sound of ejecting pipette tips really sounds like, talk to me about Warren Ellis. I heard somewhere that his short stories (Spider Jerusalem in particular was referenced) were some of the most extraordinary out there, and I'm really, really into short stories lately; but what I find is almost universally graphic novels. I certainly don't *mind* graphic novels, but they are not grabbing me with the same ferocity of short story collections these days. Am I barking up the wrong tree? Are they referring to graphic novels as short stories? Have you other short story authors to recommend? Other books you've read recently that you feel like the world should know about?

I've been reading Charnas's Walk to the End of the World, and I wish it weren't kicking me out as often as it is; but I persist. I am also reading Salman Rushdie for the first time, his East, West stories, and oh sweet cheesecake, I am in love with the language. I ration the stories so that I have time to properly process and consider the remarkable subjects despite the somewhat unreliable narrators. Extraordinary.

Comments

[splash-the-cat.livejournal.com]

Connie Willis' short story collections (Fire Watch and Impossible Things, and her new big omnibus) are excellent.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

Oh yes? Fantastic. I shall check it out.

[ladyjax.livejournal.com]

I know Ellis through his comics work and not his short stories so I'm probably the wrong person to ask. I never read "Transmetropolitan" but I inhaled three other short comics series that he did. If you care to give them a try (I know, I know, they're graphic novels but I got them as single issues) I highly recommend:

Global Frequency - 1001 people are on the Global Frequency. They are ordinary people who are all connected by a woman named Miranda Zero who pledged to make right the things that she and other people like her (i.e. spooks) did. I like this one because Ellis presents no easy answers. If you have a chance, you really should try to track down the pilot the WB made for GF. It got released to the net because the WB killed it. It's probably one of the hardest things I've ever watched because I knew it would never be made into a show.

Planetary - a sort of secret history of the world that's protected and monitored by the Planetary organization. Science hero type stuff and I loved it madly.

Nextwave - pure and utter crack that takes second string Marvel heroes and makes them into a super team that skips out when they realize that they company they're working for is testing weapons of mass destruction on the American populace.

As far as Charnas goes, I read Motherlines way before I ever got a copy of Walk so by the time I read Walk I could deal with it. Since I read Motherlines when I was about thirteen, I think Walk would have messed with my head badly. But do stick with it. I believe Charnas makes us look at women in a very different way that goes beyond a lot of other feminist renderings. One thing about the men's society in Walk: Charnas said in an interview I did with her that the men's society is what resulted when you had a society that had no room for love. It reflective of the political landscape at the time so it sort of fits.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

Huh... those sound really cool. And I'm beginning to think that the guy who said something like 'for my money, Warren Ellis is one of the best short story writers out there' may have been deliberately referencing the graphic novels as short stories.

I love science hero stuff. Global Frequency sounds awesome too.

Charnas is doing things with her societies that are both more extremist and pretty much the same themes I've read before. Maybe it's due to science training, but I can see the genetic diversity problem in Motherlines (finished Walk, and the last, finally built friendship was interesting enough to pick up the second book, but I'm stalled out again,) coming from a mile away. The lack of love or respect for it is interesting, but it also means, or the author has allowed it to translate into a lack of sympathy for any of the characters anywhere, really. I'm having trouble *caring* about any of them, wierdly (a few of the horsewomen are starting to interest me, but there's a lack of curiosity that's killing me). And this type of story at least is right up my alley, there's something about the prose that isn't resonating.

I am nothing if not stubborn, though. I'll keep at it.

[raqs.livejournal.com]

The single best short story book of the last twenty years or so is Andy Duncan's _Beluthahatchie and other stories_. He is a master and I study at his feet. If you get it would love to hear what you think of it.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

Damn. Okay, it goes to the top of the list; that's high praise.

[thassalia.livejournal.com]

Kelly Link's "Stranger Things Happen". Or, if you're in the mood to look shiftily at humanity and laugh in horror, anything by George Saunders.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

*takes notes*

Look shiftily at humanity? Tell me more! Will these give me nightmares?

[rydra_wong]

I heard somewhere that his short stories (Spider Jerusalem in particular was referenced) were some of the most extraordinary out there, and I'm really, really into short stories lately; but what I find is almost universally graphic novels.

Spider Jerusalem is the protagonist of the Transmetropolitan comics; I don't know if there are any (text-only) short stories featuring him.

ETA:

Have you other short story authors to recommend?

Have I recced Ted Chiang to you yet?

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

I don't know either. I suspect the short story label was not used in the way I interpreted it.

You have not recced Ted Chiang! Anywhere in particular you'd suggest to start?

After all, you gave me Babel 17 and the Intuitionist, your taste is usually fabulous.

[rydra_wong]

*bounces*

Go forth and grab Chiang's collection Stories Of Your Life, and Others. He's one of the bright new stars of sf, and pretty much only writing at short story length where he owns the form; it's one of the strongest collections I've read for decades.

meme!

[kuwdora.livejournal.com]

I want to ask you tons and tons of questions about what drives you to write fanfic-- how you write and conceive of such amazing stories like The God of Poets Has Two Hands and just.. all of your Teal'c fic in particular, but just.. all of it. Do you have lots of WIPs? Do you think you'll ever get tired of writing gateverse? Do you think you'll ever move on from writing gateverse and write in a new show? Are there any new (or new-to-you) shows/fandoms that you would like to step into if you had the time?


What are your thoughts on the 2008 election? What's your favorite superhero movie? What's the worst roommate experience you've ever had?

Currently, what non-fannish thing is making you happy in life?

...should keep the minxies busy.

Re: meme!

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

Hee! OKAY THEN.

(and I was starting to think everyone would ignore the meme in favor of the short story discussion... silly me.)