This post isn’t just about the third book in the Ender’s Game series–it’s about the genocide of an entire alien race, which is actually a fairly important trope in science fiction. Of all the evils of our modern era, perhaps the most heinous is the systematic extermination of an entire race or ethnicity. These acts… Continue reading X is for Xenocide
Tag: war
K is for Klingon
Ah, the proud warrior race. Where would science fiction be without it? From Klingons to Ur-Quans, Wookies to Sangheilis, Mri to Green Martians to Vor Lords, warrior races have been a staple of space opera and space-centered science fiction pretty much since the genre was invented. The concept behind this trope is the same as… Continue reading K is for Klingon
E is for Empire
Almost every far future science fiction story has a galactic empire of some kind. From Dune to Foundation, from Star Wars to Firefly, there’s always someone trying to rule the galaxy, often in a way that makes life difficult for the protagonists. Why? Rule of drama, of course, but also because it gives the story… Continue reading E is for Empire
B is for Space Battles
If you fell in love with science fiction when you were twelve, chances were it was because of the awesome space battles. That was certainly the case with me. When I saw Star Wars for the first time, I spent hours running around the house pretending I was flying my own starfighter. In some ways,… Continue reading B is for Space Battles
The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara
June, 1863. In a bid to destroy the Army of the Potomac, Robert E. Lee invades Pennsylvania with an army of 70,000 men. Using the mountains to screen his movements, he advances toward Harrisburg, fully expecting to secure a victory that will end the American Civil War. But two weeks into the campaign, Stuart’s cavalry… Continue reading The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara
Character Interview: Master Sergeant Roman Andrei Krikoryan
So I recently heard about a really interesting blogfest, where the goal is to blog about the characters in your story, as well as have a little fun with flash fiction. The prizes look pretty good, too: a couple of free books and a manuscript critique, from a couple of up-and-coming editors. Not bad…but the… Continue reading Character Interview: Master Sergeant Roman Andrei Krikoryan
Fighting for a Homeland
For the past few weeks, I’ve been brainstorming ideas for my next big novel project. One of the ways I’ve been doing this is to by trawling tvtropes and putting together a mashup of the story tropes I’d like to play with. By far, the one that’s struck me the most is Fighting for a Homeland.… Continue reading Fighting for a Homeland
First Radio interview and other such stuff
Dude, check it out–my first radio interview just went live on the Dungeon Crawler’s Radio website! I met these guys at CONduit last month, where they had a booth and were recording all sorts of authors and artist. They were way cool when I talked with them, and when they found out I was a… Continue reading First Radio interview and other such stuff
Farnham’s Freehold by Robert Heinlein
Bomb warning. Third bomb warning. This is not a drill. Take shelter at once. Any shelter. You are going to be atom-bombed in the next few minutes. So get the lead out, you stupid fools, and quit listening to this chatter! TAKE SHELTER! Thus begins the wild and crazy story of Hugh Farnham, a middle… Continue reading Farnham’s Freehold by Robert Heinlein
The King Beyond the Gate by David Gemmell
Tenaka Khan was a child of two nations and an outsider to both. Half Nadir, half Drenai, the only home he ever knew was in the ranks of the Dragon, the elite fighting forces of the Drenai. But now, a mad dictator rules the land, and the Dragon has been destroyed. With all his friends… Continue reading The King Beyond the Gate by David Gemmell