Middle of the week again – these come and go like clockwork, don’t they? I won’t keep you long as you wend your busy way to the weekend, but here are ten posts you really should be reading this week!

fantasy and science fiction book reviews1) SPEAK

Mr Scroggins believes that the book Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson should be banned because there’s a rape in the book. Mr Scroggins implies that rape is pornography. Everyone who believes that Mr Scroggins is wrong should Speak Out.

2) Are authors and their work inseparable?

This question was asked as a result of Elizabeth Moon‘s emotional post about 9/11 and Muslims in America. Because of some things she said, some readers were disappointed and said they’d no longer be reading her work, so OF Blog of the Fallen asked: Hate the writing and not the writer, or hate the writer and not the writing, or just dismiss them both?

3) Fantasycon 2010

Last weekend Fantasycon 2010 was held in the UK and a number of attendees have written their reports. The Fantasy Awards were also announced.

4) Genre Diversity

Aidan Moher has joined the SF Signal team and provides an essay on Genre Diversity as his first contribution.

5) The Book-O-Mat

This one is an amusing tale. In The Netherlands, a company has introduced the idea of a vending machine providing books. What do you think about this? Inspired, or madness?

6) Lost Libraries

Have you ever shuddered while wondering what would happen to your private library in the event of your death? A macabre thought, it’s true, but imagine all those books you diligently and lovingly collected being scattered all over the place! Here is a tale of a Lost Library.

7) 10 Ways to Annoy A Literary Agent

I’m sure a number of our FanLit readers aspire to becoming novelists themselves. Here we have Rachelle Gardner bringing us some of her pet peeves as a literary agent. In the same vein, we have here an article on How Not To Pitch Your Work To Any Publisher.

fantasy and science fiction book reviews8) When Stories End With Ugh

Persnickety Snark talks with great passion about those series that utilise an epilogue to complete the final volume – and when those epilogues go wrong!

9) Worlds That Outgrew Their Stories

Our next destination is Grasping For The Wind, and an interesting article that takes a look at Forgotten Realms and Dragonlance, and the way they have continually grown since their inception.

10) Smart Chicks Kick It Tour

Finally on this week’s romp around the Internet, I bring you (via The Story Siren) news of the Smart Chicks Kick It Tour. Are any of you intending to head to this? Or have any of you been to the three signings so far?

That’s all, folks! See you next week!

Author

  • Amanda Rutter (guest)

    AMANDA RUTTER, one of our guest reviewers, used to be an accountant in the UK but she escaped the world of numbers and is now living in a fantasy world she creates. She runs Angry Robot's YA imprint, Strange Chemistry. And we knew her when....

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