Samuel R. Delany

Cyberpunk Is Alive, Evolving, and More Relevant Than Ever

Sci-fi author Lavanya Lakshminarayan explains how cyberpunk continues to thrive in South Asian literature.

March Is Here, and It’s Bringing Tons of New Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books

Running low on reading material? Lucky for you, March is about to unleash a ton of new sci-fi and fantasy books onto shelves. Read on for what’s to come in dystopian tales, deep-space murders, palace intrigue, multiple portals, love in the afterlife, and so much (seriously, so much) more. The Conductors by Nicole Glover After…

Samuel R. Delany on His Legacy, Creativity, and ‘Promiscuously Autobiographical’ Work

Writer Samuel R. Delany professes confusion at the kinds of titles his audience has sometimes attributed to him—in a Facebook post last year, he mentioned that some considered him a sort of Grand Master of Sci-Fi, and wondered what it meant. For his readers, at least, that means he’s written scores of celebrated science fiction…

Junot Diaz Explains Why You Need Time Travel To Explain The Weirdness of Post-Colonialism

Realism is a moving target, especially when you’re creating stories that capture the weirdness of living in the wake of colonialism. Junot Diaz (This is How You Lose Her) took part in a conversation with Hilton Als at the Strand Bookstore, and he talked about how sometimes time travel is the only way to depict…

10 Ultra-Weird Science Fiction Novels that Became Required Reading

You want a really weird ride? A science fiction or fantasy epic that stretches your brain like taffy and ties it into strange irregular shapes? Forget television or movies: books are where the really off-kilter stories are told in speculative fiction. A while ago, we listed 10 ultra-weird science fiction books that you’ve never read.…

Help! I Put A Placeholder In My Story—And It Became Permanent!

Writing is a messy business for most of us—even if you’re one of those people who outlines everything in advance, there’s always going to be some parts that you make up as you go. And sometimes, a first draft will include stuff that you know you’re going to have to change later. But what happens…

Read This Excellent Interview With Samuel R. Delany Over On SF Signal

Over on SF Signal, John Stevens has a really interesting interview with SF Grandmaster Samuel R. Delany. In it, they discuss a recent re-release of Delany’s first three novels, genre literature and his career. Here’s a snippet: Q: In Kim Stanley Robinson’s introduction to the tribute volume STORIES FOR CHIP he discusses the feeling that…

10 Science Fiction Authors Whose Books Just Kept Getting Stranger

A lot of authors tend to become more conventional over time. They get more mainstream cred, mellow out, and sand the rough edges off their work. But some of science fiction’s most famous authors have just kept pushing the limits of storytelling. Here are 10 science fiction and fantasy authors whose books only got weirder.…

The Cover Artist Who Combined “Sense Of Humor” And “Sense of Wonder”

Ed Emshwiller was one of the all-time great cover artists of science fiction and fantasy. And over at Geeky Nerf Herder, there’s an absolutely eye-popping collection of his book and magazine cover art. Including a surprisingly large number of “Santa Claus in space” images. Check out a few of our favorites below — but tons…

When Writers Remake Gender, They Create A Better Mirror On Our World

There’s a fascinating interview with Ursula K. Le Guin over at Electric Literature. She talks about the former literary/genre divide, and when to ignore “the rules.” And she also explains why creating radically different versions of gender is actually a way to help people see the here and now more clearly. Top image: Map of…

21 Books That Changed Science Fiction And Fantasy Forever

Speculative fiction is the literature of change and discovery. But every now and then, a book comes along that changes the rules of science fiction and fantasy for everybody. Certain great books inspire scores of authors to create something new. Here are 21 of the most influential science fiction and fantasy books. Top image: Magrathea…

We Need A New Literary Movement With A Slightly Ludicrous Name

When I first obsessed about the idea of being a science-fiction writer, I was captivated by the Slipstream movement, which aimed to bust genre boundaries and shatter expectations. And reading about 1975’s science fiction boom makes you realize how great the New Wave was. So maybe it’s time for a new movement with a zany…

In 1975, Newsweek Warned that Science Fiction Was Taking Over

These days, we’re used to seeing articles about how science fiction has gone mainstream, or how the geeks rule the world. But back in 1975, this was still a relatively new idea — and it kind of terrified Newsweek Magazine. In December 1975, Newsweek’s book critic Peter S. Prescott began a feature on the science…

Eileen Gunn’s strange thought experiments will unravel your mind

Plenty of science fiction and fantasy authors do “thought experiments” — but few of them disregard experimental safety protocols with quite as much gleeful abandon as Eileen Gunn. And now, at long last, Gunn is publishing a second book of demented tales. Gunn’s new book Questionable Practices comes out in March from Small Beer Press,…

It’s about time. Samuel R. Delany was named this year’s Damon Knight Memorial Grand Masterby the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America.

Black Kirby and Janelle Monae: The New Cutting Edge of Afrofuturism

Afrofuturism, the movement that puts people of African descent at the center of futuristic and science-fictional ideals, has gotten a new avatar in the form of singer Janelle Monae. But there’s also a new book coming out, two new art shows, an Octavia Butler graphic novel, and much, much more. A terrific article in Ebony…

Amazing line-up. If you’re anywhere near Williams College from Oct. 22-24, you should make a beeline to the David Hartwell ’63 Science Fiction Symposium, featuring Samuel R. Delany, Kim Stanley Robinson, Elizabeth Kolbert, Paolo Bacigalupi and tons more.

What Samuel R. Delany Can Tell Publishing About Its Latest “Trend”

Almost every article you read about books lately bemoans the fact that nobody reads any more — except that now, in the age of ebooks, you’re starting to hear the opposite complaint. A recent New York Times article says people are reading too much, and too quickly. This, in turn, is meaning authors are under…

Some Excellent Recommendations for 1960s Science Fiction Books Everyone Should Read

Our favorite meme today is the one where people list their top 11 science fiction novels from the 1960s. It started over on Science Fiction Ruminations and then spread to Yellow and Creased. And there are some great, great recommendations in there. I’m struck by the diversity, with the two lists I’ve seen thus far…

New York Review of Science Fiction may cease print publication in July

The New York Review of Science Fiction has been a major source of insights into science fiction writing and criticism since 1988, with Hugo nominations every year since 1989. (Among many other fine essays, they published Samuel Delany’s essay on racism and science fiction.) Now the Review may be converting to an electronic-only publication, for…