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 Laura E. Reeve, Science Fiction and Fantasy Author

 

The Eclectic Speculative Fiction Reader

I believe anyone who wants to publish in a genre, should read in that genre. So I read science fiction, fantasy, and some horror, which I call "speculative fiction." For a definition of speculative fiction, however, I can only mumble about futuristic or fantastic elements, then point to the SF/Fantasy section of the bookstore. The genre is defined by the readers who buy it, which isn't such a bad idea, is it?

Every reader has a different definition of this genre and subgenres. I have a friend who says Science Fiction is the Star Wars Universe, period. Another thinks my Kedros series is Fantasy (Has she seen the Vigilante cover? Is that fairy dust shooting from Ari's honking big weapon that she's never used?) The point is, under the sign that says "Science Fiction & Fantasy," you can find anything...

Laura, at her desk

The Eclectic Reader

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Mar
12

Cursor’s Fury, by Jim Butcher

Why start with the third novel in Jim Butcher’s Codex Alera series? Well, it’s the best way to evaluate a series: how strong is the overall story, how complete is the world, how engaging are the characters, and how capable is the author (particularly with backstory)? In this case, Butcher excels in all areas.

From the (lackluster) back cover blurb:

When the power-hungry High Lord of Kalare launches a merciless rebellion against the First Lord, young Tavi of Calderon joins a newly formed Legion under an assumed name. And when the ruthless Kalare allies himself with a savage enemy of the Realm, Tavi finds himself leading an inexperienced, poorly equipped Legion—the only force standing between Alera and certain doom…

An Aside on Back Cover Synopses

I called it lackluster, but the back cover synopsis is pretty much the norm for epic fantasy. Is the main character loyal and honorable? Check (after all, he’s joining a Legion.) Facing a ruthless and merciless antagonist? Check. Facing savage enemies of the realm? Check. Standing between the realm and certain doom? Check.

Unfortunately, the mid-series blurb is hard to write and it rarely conveys much about the series. There’s no space to explain the overarching conflict (just a reference to the “power-hungry High Lord of Kalare” rebelling against “the First Lord”), a conflict which must be composed of intrigue, politics, power struggles, and warfare—because this is epic fantasy. And, unless we’re familiar with Tavi and why he’s so integral to this (epic) conflict, the blurb will merely reinforce the book’s sub-genre. That’s also the biggest job of the cover—telegraphing it’s sub-genre and type to the readers who will be interested in it. At the least, the blurb and cover must promise epic deeds and warfare, generally in a world rife with danger and magic, even if we don’t yet understand the specifics of the plot.

Backstory: A Necessity, But Not an Evil

What generally can’t be related in mid-series blurbs or synopses is backstory. Most beginning fiction writers groan when they try to season their beginning chapters with backstory. Likewise, most craft books treat backstory like it’s a necessary evil—something that must be provided to the reader, as well as being onerous and tricky for the writer (well, it’s certainly onerous for the reader if the writer isn’t doing a good job).

Here’s another take: I submit that backstory is what makes a character interesting and drives the story forward. Backstory forms questions about the character that the reader wants answered. Backstory builds mystery about a character and drives character motivation.

When we read stand-alone romances, thrillers, or mysteries—we can’t form attachments to characters without the author providing tidbits of backstory. Why should we care if Amy isn’t interested in the hunky hero? (Hint… her previous relationship ended in tragedy). Why should we care if Sarah is being followed and watched at night? (Hint… she might be under Witness Protection). Why should we care if Hank is missing? (Hint… he’s a great husband and father but he has a dark past…) Read more »

Feb
11

I Am Not A Serial Killer, by Dan Wells

I’d never have wandered by this book in the bookstore (online or brick-and-morter). But I encountered this book in the strangest of places: on my mother’s kitchen counter. I stopped, in surprise, and picked it up.

“Did you buy this?” I asked her. It looked to be mainstream with a horror bent, or just plain genre horror. Mom is an eclectic reader, like I am, but other than the occasional Stephen King she tends toward mainstream novels, biographies, historical fiction, some SF/F, etc.

Mom shrugged. “It was recommended by my book club. You can borrow it, if you want.”

I read the flap and the premise was intriguing. The synopsis indicated it was a Young Adult (YA) book, based upon the (inferred) age of the protagonist and the way it was written:

John Wayne Cleaver is dangerous, and he knows it. He’s spent his life doing his best not to live up to his potential.

He’s obsessed with serial killers but really doesn’t want to become one. So for his own sake, and the safety of those around him, he lives by rigid rules he’s written for himself, practicing normal life as if it were a private religion that could save him from damnation.

Dead bodies are normal to John. He likes them, actually. They don’t demand or expect the empathy he’s unable to offer. Perhaps that’s what gives him the objectivity to recognize that there’s something different about the body the police have just found behind the Wash-n-Dry Laundromat–and to appreciate what that difference means.

Now, for the first time, John has to confront a danger outside himself, a threat he can’t control, a menace to everything and everyone he would love, if only he could.

I turned the book over and looked at the quotes. Even more intriguing, Brandon Sanderson had provided a quote. There was also a quote from an author I didn’t recognize, but Brandon Sanderson—I consider him the most promising new author in the Fantasy genre. Why quote him on YA horror, unless there was some sort of supernatural or speculative element in this book? I decided to read it. In the acknowledgements, I found out that Sanderson is a friend of the author, so I thought I might be wrong… but I wasn’t. It just took a bit of time to get to the supernatural part. Read more »

Jan
21

Year’s (2004) Best SF, 21st Collection, edited by Gardner Dozois

The problem with short stories, both in reading them and trying to get them published, is that they’re so subjective. As they say about Beauty, Story and Character are also in the eye of the beholder.

This collection of short stories comes from 2004 and I picked it up at the last MileHiCon. The last collection I read from Gardner Dozois kept me spellbound, through my vacation in Maui, no less. That collection had been put together in 2006 and I still remember most of the stories, if not the names of the authors. This collection… did not affect me in the same way.

I read in the evenings before bed and I usually look forward to that time. I usually have to put down the book reluctantly so I get enough sleep. Not this time. I had to force myself to pick up the book when I was in one of the (longer) short stories (I won’t go into which ones felt like a grind). After I finished the collection, with relief, I immediately turned to the table of contents to look over the stories and pick out my favorites.

Guess what? With two exceptions, I couldn’t even remember the stories—not their protagonists, world, environments, moods, or what I’d experienced while reading them—I was totally blank. The exceptions? I remembered The Fluted Girl, by Paulo Bacigalupi, because his dystopian worlds (not my favorite, because they’re so dark) are always memorable and at least the story was about someone interesting doing something interesting. Read more »

Dec
23

Ariel, by Steven R. Boyett (and Thoughts About Updating Backlist)

Back cover, which is a good summation:

It’s been five years since the change… Five years since the lights went out, cars stopped in the streets, and magical creatures began roaming the towns and countrysides of Earth.

Pete Garey, a young loner who survived the Change and the madness that followed, spent two years wandering and scavenging the near-deserted cities and towns alone—until the day he encountered an injured unicorn. He nursed her back to health and named her Ariel, and an unlikely friendship was formed.

But unicorns are rare even in a Changed world—and the power of their magic is highly prized.

A necromancer in New York City covets that power and will stop at nothing to possess Ariel, dead or alive. Sought by bounty hunters both human and inhuman, Pete and Ariel decide to make a stand against their enemy—and journey to confront the dark sorcerer in the ruined heart of the city he has made his own twisted kingdom.

All Things Considered…

This is a reprint of Boyett’s 1983 debut novel and I wondered why I’d never stumbled upon it, considering it featured a unicorn. In the past, I’ve studied unicorn lore and a “post-apocalyptic fantasy” that featured one was intriguing. It has a wonderful premise, but in the end the inconsistency in the world and the characterization balanced everything out to… a so-so book. [Warning: some minor plot spoilers follow]. Read more »