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A Survey Course In Fear and Wonder

October 15, 2020 Sean Cassity
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There is so much out there to read, and until you get your turn in a time loop, you don’t have time to read it all to find the highlights.

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In Appreciations Tags Science Fiction, Horror, Stephen King
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Decolonizing Speculative Fiction: Stories that Pulled Us Off Center

September 11, 2020 Theodore McCombs

Still thinking about Shiv Ramdas and Ted Chiang’s Hugo/Nebula-nominated stories, “And Now His Lordship Is Laughing,” and “Omphalos”

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In Appreciations Tags Hugo Awards, Ted Chiang, Shiv Ramdas, Comparative religion, Nebula Awards
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The Anya DeNiro Game

July 24, 2020 Theodore McCombs

A look back at Anya DeNiro’s mind-bending weird fiction collection, Tyrannia and Other Renditions.

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In Appreciations Tags Anya DeNiro, Tyrannia, Short Stories, Weird Fiction, Dystopia, Metafiction, Queer Literature
1 Comment

Resistance Is Not Futile: On Jeff VanderMeer’s “Dead Astronauts” and Fighting the Good Fight

June 29, 2020 Mark Springer
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In a world on the brink of collapse, a quest to save the future, one defeat at a time.

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In Appreciations Tags Science Fiction, post-apocalyptic, Biotech, Multiverse, Jeff VanderMeer, Mark Springer
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Utopias and Nightmares: Stories of Omelas

June 5, 2020 C.S. Peterson
The Nightmare. Henry Fuseli, 1781. A very white woman, a very dark nightmare.

The Nightmare. Henry Fuseli, 1781. A very white woman, a very dark nightmare.

What could be more speculative at this moment than a vision of utopia? Utopia’s are hard to write. First, there’s convincing the reader that it’s possible at all. Contributor C.S. Peterson explores the haunting utopian visions of N. K. Jemisin, Ursula K. Le Guin, Aliette de Bodard, and S.L. Huang

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In Appreciations Tags CS Peterson, African-American speculative fiction, Ursula K. Le Guin, How Long 'Til Black Future Month, The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas, The Ones Who Stay and Fight
1 Comment

A Tale of Two Pandemics in Erie, CO

May 29, 2020 CH Lips
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Find meaning and beauty in the midst, and aftermath, of pandemic in Peter Heller’s The Dog Stars.

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In Appreciations Tags The Dog Stars, Peter Heller, pandemic, post-apocalyptic, CH Lips
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Dead Dogs and Final Girls: An Interview with Stephen Graham Jones

March 7, 2020 C.S. Peterson
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The stories of award-winning author Stephen Graham Jones are brimming with heart, hurt, humor, and gallons and gallons of blood. Fiction Unbound contributor C.S. Peterson talks with Mr. Jones to talk about monsters, his newest novel, and why the dogs never survive.

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In Appreciations Tags Interview, Stephen Graham Jones, CS Peterson
1 Comment

Celebrating Black Speculative Fiction 2020

February 28, 2020 Fiction Unbound
Mark Bradford, Realness, 2016. Mixed media on canvas; 108.25 x 168.5 in. Denver Art Museum Collection

Mark Bradford, Realness, 2016. Mixed media on canvas; 108.25 x 168.5 in. Denver Art Museum Collection

For Black History Month, some favorite short stories and novels by new and classic black SF/F writers.

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In Appreciations Tags Black Speculative Fiction, Theodore McCombs, CS Peterson, CH Lips, Gemma Webster, Tochi Onyebuchi, Christopher Caldwell, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Jordan Casteel, Celeste Rita Baker, African-American speculative fiction
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“The Rise of Skywalker”: A Problematic Journey

January 24, 2020 The Unbound Writers

The Star Wars saga never fails to ignite passionate debate. Fiction Unbound contributors Corey Dahl and C. S. Peterson talk about the troubled template of Campbell’s hero’s journey and what The Rise of Skywalker says about where we are on our quest.

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In Appreciations Tags Star Wars, Corey Dahl, CS Peterson
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Celebrating Native American Speculative Fiction: Some Favorites

November 15, 2019 The Unbound Writers
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In honor of Native American Heritage Month, we recommend a few of our favorite Native American speculative fiction writers and stories.

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In Appreciations Tags Theodore McCombs, Lisa Mahoney, Mark Springer, CS Peterson, Stephen Graham Jones, Louise Erdrich, Darcie Little Badger, Rebecca Roanhorse
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Adventures in Alternate Realities: The 2019 Philip K. Dick Fest and Dreaming Androids

August 30, 2019 The Unbound Writers
Portrait of Philip K. Dick by New Orleans artist, Brent Houzenga. Exhibited on August 9, 2019 along with many of his other works for the 2nd International Philip K. Dick Festival at the Center for the Arts and Community Enrichment, Fort Morgan, CO.

Portrait of Philip K. Dick by New Orleans artist, Brent Houzenga. Exhibited on August 9, 2019 along with many of his other works for the 2nd International Philip K. Dick Festival at the Center for the Arts and Community Enrichment, Fort Morgan, CO.

Two ways to appreciate the prolific, Hugo-award winning Philip K. Dick: attend the 2nd International Philip K. Dick Festival and revisit one of his most popular novels.

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In Appreciations Tags Philip K. Dick, Philips K. Dick Festival, Wide Books, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, Blade Runner, C.H. Lips, Jim Ringel, Mark Springer
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Computational Philosophy: Ted Chiang’s Stories as Engines of Inquiry

August 9, 2019 Theodore McCombs

Ted Chiang’s second collection of award-winning stories, reviewed.

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In Appreciations, Reviews Tags Ted Chiang, Exhalation, Stories of Your Life, Short Stories, Theodore McCombs, Theodicy, Robots, Time Travel, Existentialism, Artificial Intelligence
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Novels of No-Self

July 19, 2019 Guest Contributor
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Author Jim Ringel discovers in Scott Smith’s The Ruins, Jeff VanderMeer’s Annihilation, and Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian a different kind of eco-fiction.

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In Appreciations Tags Buddhism, scott smith, The Ruins, Jeff VanderMeer, Annihilation, Cormac McCarthy, Blood Meridian, Jim Ringel, Eco-fiction
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Non-Western Fantasies Are Finally Getting the Attention They Deserve

April 26, 2019 Lisa Mahoney
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Non-Western fantasies increase readers’ understanding of diverse histories and cultures in an increasingly xenophobic age.

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In Appreciations Tags Lisa Mahoney, Nebula Awards, G. Willow Wilson, S.A. Chakraborty, R. F. Kuang, Ausma Zehanat Khan, non-Western fantasies
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Thomas Ligotti and the Derangement of Creation

March 1, 2019 Mark Springer
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An underappreciated master of horror, appreciated.

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In Appreciations Tags Thomas Ligotti, Supernatural, Horror, Mark Springer
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Celebrating Black Speculative Fiction: Some Favorites

February 15, 2019 The Unbound Writers
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For Black History Month, some favorite short stories by new and classic black SF/F writers.

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In Appreciations Tags N.K. Jemisin, W.E.B. Du Bois, Charles W. Chesnutt, Nisi Shawl, Rivers Solomon, Cadwell Turnbull, Phenderson Djeli Clark, Black History Month, African-American speculative fiction, Southern Gothic, Victor LaValle, Lisa Mahoney, Danyelle C. Overbo, Amanda Baldeneaux, Theodore McCombs, Jon Horwitz-White, CH Lips
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Averting Literary Extinction Events: An Appreciation of Undertow Publications

February 1, 2019 Gemma Webster
Year’s Best Weird Fiction Volume Five Edited by Robert Shearman and Michael Kelly

Year’s Best Weird Fiction Volume Five Edited by Robert Shearman and Michael Kelly

Undertow Publications is a small press that has won the Shirley Jackson award for best edited anthology. Their lauded anthology, Year’s Best Weird Fiction went from endangered to extinct with Volume 5. Come celebrate this beautiful volume and learn about this press, which despite this set back, has amazing books on offer this year.

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In Appreciations Tags Weird Fiction, Undertow Publications, Michael Kelly, Robert Shearman, Horror, Simon Strantzas, Priya Sharma, Gemma Webster, Kathleen Kayembe, Kurt Fawver
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"The Hazel Wood": Interrogating the European Fairy Tale

August 24, 2018 C.S. Peterson
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Melissa Albert’s debut novel cuts to the bone of European fairy tales to find the essence of nightmares: horrors that are both seductive and disturbing.

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In Appreciations Tags Fairy Tales, female protagonist, The Hero's Journey, Young Adult Fantasy
3 Comments

“The Strange Bird”

July 27, 2018 Mark Springer
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Jeff VanderMeer’s spare, heartbreaking novella soars through the world of Borne.

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In Appreciations Tags Biotech, Jeff VanderMeer, Mark Springer, Science Fiction
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Binti is back! Celebrating the new hardcover editions

July 20, 2018 Amanda Baldeneaux
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We love Binti! We’re celebrating the re-release of Okorafor’s Hugo and Nebula award-winning trilogy in beautiful hardcover editions with an appreciation of the difficulties involved in coming of age, intergalactic exploration, and saving the world, all at the same time.

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In Appreciations Tags Binti, Binti: Home, Binti: The Night Masquerade, Nnedi Okorafor, Amanda Baldeneaux, Science Fiction, African-American speculative fiction
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