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Artist, Heather Oliver             

The Future’s so Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades!

As of last Friday, I’m an affiliate member of SFWA, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.  I want to thank Mary Robinette Kowal for her lightspeed approval of my application and her warm welcome; and the three friends who supported my application: Jack McDevitt, Laura Mixon and Gerry Nordley.

To further brighten this happy occasion, SF Signal is hosting my review of Shine, an anthology of optimistic near-future SF edited by author/editor Jetse de Vries.  Readers of this blog have heard me complain about the inclination of contemporary SF to whiny broodinessShine is an antidote to that: a worthwhile experiment that deserves to have readers and successors.

And… io9 approached the Science in My Fiction blog founders, asking if they can reprint posts of potential interest to their readers.  For their first “reprint”, they chose You Only Find What You’re Looking For.  Today io9, tomorrow the galaxy!

5 Responses to “The Future’s so Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades!”

  1. Jim Fehlinger says:

    > SF Signal is hosting my review of Shine, an anthology of
    > optimistic near-future SF. . .

    I have to wonder if the title might be a deliberate rejoinder
    to Joni Mitchell’s recent song of the same name.

    Do Mitchell’s lyrics count as “whiny broodiness”? ;->

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNflavqCmEc

  2. Neo says:

    All the Best!

    Neo

  3. Athena says:

    Thank you, Neo!

    Jim, I think your video link is rather the opposite of whiny broodiness. It shows people coming together, in real space and time. I think Jetse had the same idea as the lyrics of the song — to show that a future livable by regular, ordinary people is possible; and that it can be humane and comfortable at the same time.

  4. Brian M says:

    What do you think of William Gibson? You are making me feel guilty for devouring everything he writes! 🙂

  5. Athena says:

    No need to feel guilty, Brian! You don’t have to stop reading Gibson — just read non-cyberpunk authors as well. I read Neuromancer and some of his short stories and I saw the film version of Johny Mnemonic (like Stephanie Zacharek, I have a soft spot for Keanu Reeves because of his implicit vulnerability and despite his very limited range). I don’t have a strong, clear memory of Gibson’s works, so I haven’t formed a specific opinion of him.