Science Fiction Checklist Challenge

  • Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: New Wave Science Fiction

    By David H. At the beginning of the 1960’s, science fiction was in a rut. While grand masters, such as Isaac Asimov and Arthur Clarke, were still writing interesting and worthwhile work, the genre itself had become fossilized. The tropes of pulp science fiction (rockets ships, robots, aliens barely distinguishable from humans, and square-jawed, flawless… Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Kids

    ~posted by Jenny C. We’re coming to a close on the Science Fiction Checklist Challenge shortly, but I wanted to make sure there were a few more offerings for the child sci-fi reader out there. Oddly, while children’s fiction is crammed to the gills with fantasy and magic, there’s not much SF on the shelf,… Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Alternative History

    ~posted by Selby G. History is a series of events. But what if some of those important events had a different outcome? What if the Soviet Union won the cold war or Kennedy didn’t get assassinated? How would that change the world? Science fiction writers are known for pondering the wild realms of speculation and… Continue reading

  • The Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Hard SF

    By Richard C. Start your Hard Science Fiction Checklist Challenge with a just-published and aptly-titled short story collection, Carbide Tipped Pens. Number 1 is called The Blue Afternoon that Lasted Forever, and there’s more intensity in its 13 pages than you’ve ever had before. Yes indeed, you’ll find it a work of Hard SF that’s… Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Graphic Novels

    ~Posted by Daniel S. Science fiction and graphic novels go together like a cape and a mask. You may not have considered it before, but the superhero genre really is just another version of sci-fi. Think about all the sci-fi concepts that pop up in your favorite comics: Radiation turns an ordinary man into a… Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Cyberpunk

    ~posted by Meranda T. There are many people who claim to be the inventors of Cyberpunk but the true inventor is highly debated. Cyberpunk is essentially about technology, specifically the Internet. It’s social decay wrapped in high technology; the ability to directly connect to the internet and interface with it in a virtual fashion; or… Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: YA!

    ~posted by Hayden Young adult science fiction is like, so hot right now. If you are a fan of violent future worlds in which teens struggle against corrupt regimes (but still manage to fall in love), there are plenty of titles to choose from. Perhaps you’ve heard of a little book called The Hunger Games? Or… Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Aliens!

    ~posted by Lindsay S.  When I think about aliens, Giorgio Tsoukalos from Ancient Aliens on the History Channel is actually the first thing that comes to mind. For those of you who haven’t seen the show, it examines unexplained historical events and monuments and theorizes that humanity was helped along at various points by ancient… Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Robots and Androids

    ~by Meranda T. Android, metal man, cyborg, automaton… these are all synonyms for Robot.  Created by man to help make life easier, at least, this is what the hope is. This idea of a robot can be seen throughout history. In Greek mythology, Hephaestus, a Greek god, made mechanical servants. There is a text in… Continue reading

  • The Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Military SF part III

    By Richard C. It’s Military SF part III! And for those of you following along at home, I know what you’re thinking — how did it take two whole posts to get to Joe W. Haldeman and Orson Scott Card? Just who does this Richard C. guy think he is, anyway? Well, here we go!    … Continue reading

  • The Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Military SF Part II

    By Richard C. It’s Military SF part II, and important questions remain. Like what about the role of women here, both as authors and characters? If you made it to Seattle’s February Potlatch convention – a small, literary speculative fiction event – you might have seen a session called Women Ruin War – The Gendering of Military… Continue reading

  • The Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Military SF Part I

    By Richard C. This week let’s mobilize your imagination for the military themes in Science Fiction. In fact, I have so much to say about it that we’re starting early with the first of three installments. Diverse opinions on the issue of war notwithstanding, Military SF can launch a reading experience altogether exhilarating, touching, educational,… Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Dying Earth

    ~posted by Carrie M. There is something both chilling and oddly beautiful about the concept of a dying earth. This literary genre places the reader on the precipice of humanity’s destruction and forces us to come to terms with the fragility of life and the evils of society that are nearly always the cause of… Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Science Fantasy

    ~ posted by David H. “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” ~Arthur C. Clarke Though many fans will vehemently deny it, the truth is that science fiction’s most closely related sister genre is fantasy. Both tell fantastic stories set on different worlds with unusual societies and often featuring non-human characters. But while science… Continue reading

  • The Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Near Future

    ~posted by Lindsay S. I would like to talk to you about the wonder that is Margaret Atwood, but I feel a little weird associating her with a Science-Fiction checklist. Margaret Atwood writes important novels like The Handmaid’s Tale. She’s a serious author and science-fiction is so very genre. It would be like suggesting William… Continue reading

  • The Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Time Travel

    ~posted by Dave H. One of the most enduring concepts in science fiction is that of time travel and its consequences. From Ray Bradbury’s famous short story “A Sound of Thunder” to the BACK TO THE FUTURE films and beyond, time travel has remained a core idea in the science fiction genre. The concept itself… Continue reading

  • The Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Humorous SF

    ~posted by David H. Science fiction as a literary genre is often viewed as one of the more serious, so it can be surprising to many people that it has such a rich history of comic stories. Many of the authors from science fiction’s “Golden Age” wrote humorous science fiction tales, including L. Sprague de… Continue reading

  • The Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Beginning with Endings

    ~posted by Lindsay S. While the words ‘science fiction’ still bring to mind spaceships and alien invaders, the genre has grown over the years. We at SPL have designed a science fiction checklist to help you navigate this expansive genre and all its facets. We hope you’ll explore the many worlds of science-fiction and find a favorite… Continue reading