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 The FSFS Newsletter is written by FSFS members covering everything Fantasy and Sci-Fi |
The "Fantasy and Science Fiction Society" welcomes you to  Welcome to the February 2019 edition of the Newsletter, written by members of the "Fantasy and Science Fiction Society" for all of Writing.Com. Contents 1. Introduction - The Difference Between The Fantasy and Science Fiction Genres. 2. Reviewing (part 1) - How To Do It ~ Tobber 3. Earthsea at 50 ~ Highmage - D.H. Aire 4. Poem - He Is Your Brother ~ Uncommonspirit 5. Short Story - The Hall of Mirrors ~ A E Willcox 6. Advertisements  The Difference Between The Fantasy and Science Fiction Genres. While both fantasy and science fiction both fall under the larger category of speculative fiction, for publishing and book-selling purposes nowadays the two genres are separated. There are a few key differences which separate the genres, although it can be argued that Anne McCaffrey's Pern series, despite the existence of dragons, is science fiction, while Star Wars, despite the space setting and the technology, is fantasy due to the Force which to all intents and purposes acts like a magic system. Generally speaking, science fiction stories contain scenarios and technology which are either possible or might be possible based on science. While certain themes like faster-than-light travel and time-travel are currently thought implausible or physically impossible, they are not beyond the scope of scientific hypotheses. On the other hand, fantasy deals squarely with magic and the supernatural - things which have no basis whatsoever in science. Both science fiction and fantasy need rules. Just because fantasy is not based on any scientific facts or hypotheses, it doesn't mean your fantasy world can have anything magical happening at any time by anyone just because it suits the author in that scene. There needs to be some sort of system or laws governing the magic - limitations to either the magic or the magic user. No one wants to read a story where all problems are instantly solved by magic. That sort of story would be a very dull read.  Reviewing is probably one of the most frightening things about joining WdC. We came here, many of us at least, to meet fellow writers and get feedback on our own writing, well knowing that this wasn't going to happen unless we'd be ready to critique other peoples' writing as well. Still, it can be a daunting task when you're new at it, and even experienced reviewers shouldn't feel above revisiting their review strategy. Where do you begin? How do you structure a review? How long should it be? How much should you hold back with the critique? We shouldn't let these doubts stop us from committing to reviewing or the critiquing system would fail altogether. Besides, critiquing stories might be just as valuable a tool for improving your own writing as getting feedback yourself; it can be nearly impossible to see what works and what needs work in your own writing, but when you're reading a story you're less attached to, you can more easily see its strengths and shortcomings, then go back and compare it to your own writing. The point of this article is to remove some of those doubts and, if not help you make great reviews, then at least help you get the basics right. First of all, there are a million different ways to structure a review. Some like to quote the reviewed text a lot, some less so. Some like to present the feedback in chronological order, some like to bundle the comments in groups such as characters, plot, setting, etc. Some use a lot of colored fonts, some keep it plain and simple. There's really no right or wrong way to do this. The best advice I've heard regarding the structure and appearance of a review is to ask yourself, am I doing this to help the author? Here, then this could be adding color to your comments, which, yes, could help them stand out from the quoted pieces of the story. Or it could be adding images to your review, which probably won't help the author (it might make the review less dry, but unless it's a 10K monster I wouldn't worry about that), but it might clutter the review. For a long time, I structured my reviews into headlines like character, setting, etc. but eventually I got feedback from the people I were reviewing regularly that it actually made it more difficult for them to apply my comments to their stories. So now I just present my comments in chronological order, and I must agree, it actually makes things easier (for the reviewer and author both). But this is fine-tuning. You shouldn't really worry about this to begin with. As long as you don't overdo the fluff (colors, smileys, images, etc.), and don't copy the entire story into the review (it just doesn't work well with the way things are set up at WdC where you can't add your comments in the margin), then you should be fine. What you should focus on is content. Sometimes there are so many issues in a story that it can be difficult to choose which to mention without making a review that's five times as long as the story. Sometimes, this is probably more often the case when you're just starting out, you have no idea what to comment on, especially if you feel the story is better than what you're writing yourself (yeah, this has happened a lot to me). My number one rule for both issues is asking myself, what's the biggest problem this story has? If I'd paid good money to read this, what would've disappointed me the most about it? Sometimes, copyediting stuff (grammar, spelling, punctuations) can be so all over the place that it actually is the biggest issue, but that's rarely the case. More often it will be content rather than style that's the problem. Characters feeling stiff, stilted dialogue, heavy info-dumping, the pacing being all off, a complete lack of conflict, or something else in the structure of the story. Since none of us are professional writers, you can probably find at least one, usually more, of those kinds of problems with any story here (yes, that goes for your own writing too, but let's save that for another article). That doesn't mean you can't and shouldn't comment on copyediting, but it probably shouldn't be the bulk of your review. But I'm no expert. Why should anybody listen to my opinion? Well, no, you're probably not (neither am I), but we're readers and writers ourselves, so our opinions are relatively informed. And as we read, review, and write more and more, it will become even more informed. And in the end, it's the author who decides which critique to listen to and which to ignore. If they feel that complying with your comments would ruin the story, change it too much from what they wanted it to be, then they shouldn't do it. We all have different reading experiences, and we all have our pet peeves, so it's important for a writer to get feedback from different people before finalizing a story. I've had a professional editor and writers who know a lot more about the craft than I do look through some of my stories. Their feedback has been invaluable, but I still didn't incorporate the few things I didn't agree with. If you want more help, then Orson Scott Card (whatever else you might think of him) has offered some pretty decent guidelines. He advised reviewers to only comment on stuff that made them go, yeah, right! huh?, or so what? Meaning, places in the story where they didn't believe what was going on, places where they didn't understand what was going on, and places where they didn't care what was going on. This goes well in line with Neil Gaiman's argument that when we readers tell you something is wrong with your story, they're usually right, but when they tell you how to fix it, they usually wrong. Now, we're all writers of different experience and expertise levels, so when I can, I like to offer some advice on how I think the problem's I've identified can be fixed. But I try to keep it at that, advice, not The One and Only Answer because it could very well just be my opinion, and it might make the story worse. Now, the final issue of reviewing, the one people probably worry the most about (and, funny enough, the one you can do the least about). You've finished your review, and maybe you're just skimming it through, maybe you're doing a strict copyedit of the review itself, or maybe you're just musing about what you've written before pressing send. Either way, you begin to worry that you're being too harsh. Was the story really as bad as you made it sound? First of all, this is a good sign. It means you're a decent human being who doesn't want to hurt other peoples' feelings, and it means your review is honest. In fact, it's probably already better than ninety percent of the reviews giving at WdC, which tend to fall in the five-star I liked your story, keep writing, no specific comments category. The only specific advice I can really give on the subject is: Be nice but be honest. If you're not honest, if you're not willing to tell the author where the story felt off, then what's the point of reviewing their story? Without honest feedback how will the author make the story the best it can be? How will they grow and become better writers? And it's worth noting that the author put their story up for review themselves. If they'd wanted nothing but praise, they could've shown it to their family instead or, quite easily, put password protection on it. That being said, there are things you can do to make your review less discouraging (it's our aim to help the author, not make them quit writing altogether). Often, here at WdC, people will stick a disclaimer onto their review saying something about it being meant as a help, that it's just their opinion, etc. I must admit I'm guilty of this myself, but honestly, it feels a bit pointless, like you have to excuse yourself for taking the time to read the story and offer feedback on it (feedback the author essentially asked for by putting it up for public viewing on a review site). Also, it carries the risk of becoming a sleeping pill, an excuse for the reviewer to be unnecessarily harsh by replacing some simple techniques that would actually make your critique easier to swallow, like... Ending on a positive note. We have a tendency to remember the ending of an experience much clearer than the rest of it, which is also why the ending can make an otherwise just okay book either terrible or great. Personally, I like to end my reviews with a conclusion that sums up the most important aspects of the review and look at more overarching issues, but I always try ending them with a positive comment. Especially if I don't know the author. And you should consider the author. If it's someone you know relatively well, great. Then you probably know what kind of review they like. If not, well, there are few things you could do to make sure your review isn't misunderstood. If it's a review someone requested from you, make sure to tell them what kind of feedback they can expect from you (hopefully, that's the honest kind). If it's a random review or something similar, you could check out the author's profile page. Back when I did random reviews I often did this to see if there was anything indicating they could be especially sensitive. It could be their age, comments on them using their writing as a therapeutic outlet, etc. And if you come up with nothing, you've done all you could. But remember to still consider... The way you phrase your comments. There's a difference between writing, The first half was extremely boring. Nothing happened and The pacing felt a bit too slow in the first half. I think it might be a lack of conflict. The meaning is the same, but it doesn't take much effort to phrase it nicely. And which of the comments do you think the author is most likely to listen to? Finally, make sure to include what worked in the story as well. I've been focusing mostly on how and why to include what didn't work because these are the areas where the author has the best opportunities for growth. But it's also important to tell what they did well, both to make the critique more constructive, but also so that they know what not to change in that particular story. And if reviews of their other stories mention the same positive aspects, the author will now know what their general strong points are so they don't spend as much time working on those, but can play of them in stories meant for publication. In the end, you can't avoid pissing some people off, though. But my experience (as of writing this, I've done more than 300 WdC reviews) tells me that this has nothing to with how harsh the critique was. The vast majority of authors have responded very well to my reviews, even though I admit they can be quite rough. But even when I've sugarcoated my comments to a ridiculous degree, some people have still found reasons to complain that I was basically mean, evil, and outright tried to ruin their life. So, yeah. Take a deep breath and remember that offense is taken not given. If you're doing your best to deliver constructive criticism, no one can demand more from you. "Reviewing (part 1) - How to do it" by Tobber   I’m writing this article at my first World Fantasy. One the first full day of programming I attended the panel, “Earthsea at 50,” which was moderated by author Fran Wilde and featured illustrator Charles Vess, who worked with Ursula K. LeGuin on the illustrations for The Books of Earthsea: The Complete Illustrated Edition. This session was a highlight of the day for me, so suppose I should share some of the panelists thoughts about Earthsea, which originally was marketed as a children’s book. How it reshaped fantasy and opened realms of fantasy up to vistas beyond epic works like The Lord of the Rings, inspiring authors in the room like myself to write fantasy one day. But what captivated me was Charles Vess's talk about working with Leguin, getting her advice and direction on the illustrations in a give-and-take about the look of first a dragon, while the various publishers of the Earthsea books were locked in discussions about the rights for a year before even sending Charles a contract to sign. He finally admitted to Leguin that it felt odd to be spending so much time on the project without a contract yet. To which Leguin expressed surprise. She thought they were already “engaged.” According to Charles, this was not the first time books of Earthsea were illustrated. Each previous illustrator had said how they looked forward to working with Leguin on the illustrations, then completed them without ever being in contact with her. She was surprised when Charles not only said that as had the others, but began seeking her thoughts on the images he was working on. He showed us examples of pencil illustrations, first of the dragon I mentioned, then did one in flight, which was more to her liking. The dragon had spikes sticking straight out and Leguin told him that wasn’t quite right, the head looked too masculine. So he changed the look, making the dragon more feminine. She expressed concern over the dragon's reptilian eyes and that his early version had hands. She told him, in the time of Earthsea's creation man and dragon had started as one being and then split apart. The dragons did not want to be materialistic, able to grasp things as the humans did. Instead, they wanted the freedom wings gave them to fly. Charles displayed image after image. The one thing Leguin wanted most seemed to be more chickens— and thistles, which by their beauty made you want to touch them only to find they had thorns. She felt that summed up the nature of Earthsea's magic in many ways. So, Charles added lots of chickens and a has a framed thistle in the last illustration of the book. After Leguin’s passing, his work finished, he began to move on only to learn there was a never before published Earthsea story being added and he was being asked to illustrate that for the book as well. A question was asked about whether there might be any consideration of a book being written that included their correspondence and collaboration on the illustrations. He replied, he thought there could be, and that Leguin had written a blog post about the process, which would be perfect for such a book, too. After the session, Charles gave out posters of the book cover, which he autographed. I got one— ah, the fan in me. I later went to the art showroom, where many of those illustrations were on display, but not up for auction. Thank goodness, I’d have gone broke if they had been for sale. It is much cheaper to buy the book, which is far thicker than I could have imagined, having delighted in reading the thin volumes of A Wizard of Earthsea and The Tombs of Atuan, and so many more. "Earthsea at 50" by Highmage - D.H. Aire   I do not wear chains, but I am a slave Born in factory, fathered by science trained to be a fighter in human wars I am declared the ultimate soldier My Sergeant says look right then to the left Each face is an exact copy of my own We are the same height, same build, the same soul? Treat him well for he is your brother As my brothers die around me I wonder if this is all there is I do my duty fighting in another war We move in formation under the hot sun Do I stand with my brothers and fight Or do I fight alone for our freedom? "Invalid Item" by A Guest Visitor  Lydella gazed at the dazzling image of the woman in the looking-glass a moment too long. The glass shattered, bursting a hail of fine glittering shards outwards into the hall. She cringed into a crouch, flinging her arms around her head to protect it from the flying fragments. At the sound of a crunching footfall, she unwound and watched open-mouthed as the woman tossed her golden curls, lifted the hem of her crystal-trimmed, white velvet gown and stepped over the now empty gilded frame into the Bastion of Truth’s hall of mirrors. The woman laughed as she crushed the glass under her dainty feet and then said, “How delightful it is here! It is so light, bright, glittering, yet this chamber seemed so dark from my side of the glass. What is this place?” Lydella, captivated by her lilting voice, friendly smile, gentle blue eyes and graceful figure, curtsied and said, “It is the Bastion of Truth. I bid you welcome, Lady.” “Truth! Well, I think I will like it here very much; I am so fond of the truth. Thank you, my dear, for envisioning so strongly the destruction of the wall between our two bastions. You must be an adept. What is your name?” Lydella blushed. “Lady, I am yet a novice. My name is Lydella.” Meonaith lifted Lydella's chin with a slender forefinger, studied her face and frowned. “Yes, I see the truth of things already, Lydella. It cuts me to the depth of my heart to know you, my noble liberator, are so plain. Brown-haired and plain. In that, the mirror’s reflection was not false. But, perhaps, when I focus my discernment on your mind and heart, I’m sure I will see radiant beauty within you.” “I hope so, Lady. I seek to do what is right, good and true. I look to do kindnesses where I can.” “Kindness? I think if you have, like me, lived secluded from the world; a life spent in twilight you would know as well as I do, what kindness truly is. What was done to me was not considerate. Shutting me away, denying me my freedom and the use of my powers was not a kindness.” “I did not shut you away, Lady. I set you free.” “You did, indeed. It was the Council of Archmages. They accused me of propagating misperceptions; they said I changed things; they said I twisted reality. They said it was justice to imprison the enchantress, me, the Lady Meonaith, in the great Bastion of Correction.” Lydella’s hands flew to her face. “Oh! Then I have made the most dreadful mistake. I thought--” “You thought I was a star-sprite trapped behind the glass, my dear. But I was. I am. Look at me. Do I look like I would go out of my way to do harm; to deceive?” “You are so beautiful; I cannot believe you can be false. Star-sprites are good and honest. The Council have decreed it to be true. This Bastion is built on that tenet. Perhaps they were somehow mistaken, but I do not know how. ” “You are so young, still just a novice. You will one day see into men’s hearts and minds. However, your ability to perceive what is directly before you is good, very good indeed. Perhaps better than you, or maybe your mage tutors would want to admit….but, I see that you have not yet fully mastered self-perception.” “No, Lady Meonaith, but I have spent much time reflecting upon myself. The images I see in the mirrors here in the hall are pleasing.” “Pleasing to you alone, or to others too? That is what is important. It is not good if you have a false image of yourself. Therein lies harm. Have you not been taught this? Come let us look at your reflections together—that is if you trust my judgement. Perhaps I can help correct anything I see which will not please.” Lydella bobbed her head and turned to lead Meonaith down the long hall to the mirrors closest to the entry doors. The lady took Lydella’s arm and wrapped her own around it. “I need contact with you to see your reflections, otherwise all I will see is what I reflect. Let us start with your perceptions of people.” The close contact with Meonaith made Lydella’s feel light-headed. She sensed the enchantress’s energy, her intoxicating power. To be a pupil of this wondrous woman would be a privilege indeed. I love her so much. I wish she was my mother. Lydella guided Meonaith down the hall. Twenty tall, gleaming mirrors lined the wall on one side, each directly facing a window on the other. Without the influence of a mind to direct the image, they simply reflected the sunlight and the hall in which they hung. Lydella drew the enchantress up to the third glass from the doorway at the end. “This is where I reflect upon my favourite place.” At first glance, all the mirrors and their frames looked identical, but Lydella had spent many hours with the mirrors and their frames and having made a careful study of the subtle differences, she saw how each suggested what reflection a trained eye could see. Before her in the glass, she saw herself and the Lady Meonaith. Two more contrasting women Lydella could not imagine. She saw how rightly Meonaith had described her plain-featured with dull brown hair. Next to Lady Meonaith’s smiling, white-and-gold beauty, she saw she was even less attractive than she’d previously considered herself. Lydella focussed her attention on herself bending her mind inward to envision the bastion’s grounds where she liked to take her daily exercise. The image in the mirror began to shift, to bend and ripple as though the glass had turned to water. The glass then re-formed showing a rose garden in summer. Grass paths wove their way between long, low, precisely clipped box hedges, which contained the scented, bloused-flowered shrubs. Meonaith squeezed her arm. “That is a lovely place. Perhaps we can walk there together later. But first, you need to show me people; those who mean most to you.” Lydella guided Meonaith back up the hall to the fifteenth mirror. “This is the glass with which I reflect upon the people I know.” Lydella bent her mind to picture those people whom she most relied upon, those who had most meaning in her life. A collage of those familiar to Lydella formed - her mother, father and sisters; the maid who attended her in the mornings and evenings; the mages of the bastion. However, instead of the warm light, the montage usually radiated, it now looked as though a storm gathered behind the faces. A frown crossed Lydella’s face. This had always been her favourite glass. She had always held such affection and enthusiasm for her family, servants and tutors, but now she wondered why. They all looked so cold, so disagreeable. Meonaith squeezed her arm again. “What a collection of fine-looking people! But my dear, Lydella, it seems you have little love for them. I can perceive your aversion, your dislike. I cannot tell whether half those people in the glass are as miserable, unjust and unkind as your perception describes them. I know only of the mages, but because of that knowledge I recognize what you are showing is true.” “The mages do not like you.” “Well, that is true too. But, who is that older lady? She looks like a martinet.” “That is my mother,” Lydella’s said, her tone flat. “Your mother? But she should be pleasing to you, and so appear pleasing to me.” “She is old and ugly. I prefer to look at you.” “I am shocked, Lydella, I cannot stand in place of your mother.” “I wish you would.” “Well, I am flattered, naturally, but I do not wish for such a daughter.” “Could I be your maid?” “I do not need such a servant. Not one who is so hideous. You have shown yourself to be ignorant and ungrateful. I have seen in your true image you have no love or kindness in you. There is nothing but the desire to amuse yourself. It is no wonder now to me why you look as you do! Your appearance is ugly because you are so ugly inside.” Lydella, amazed, aghast, offended, broke free of Meonaith’s clutch and the mirror’s image reverted to its normal state. She had never before been spoken to in such a tone. The lady's angry voice sounded harsh, the words clattered around in her head. "It's not true!" she said, in an imploring voice. "All I’ve ever done and tried to do is good for other people." "You've never spared anyone your charity, or, should I say, contempt. It seems to me, the lower their status, the more chance of their suffering from your supposed loving-kindness and sweetness. You lie to yourself; you lie to me.” “No,” Lydella said, her tone now vehement, “I was dazzled by you. You are no star-sprite. You have simply cast a glamour over yourself which blinded me. Your looks, your friendliness are like the mirrors--a skin of glass over darkness.” “Ah, you are blinded, but not by me. It is the mages who control what you see and how. It is they who have warped the world--you. You think there is merit in benevolence; you think doing good things for others is virtuous. But you do not see. You do not see how that damages the weak, the vulnerable. You rob people of their desire for strength. They become weaker, dependent, grasping always for more and so they ultimately become a terrible burden to their rulers.” “No!” Lydella’s shout caused the mirrors to tremor in their frames. She walked with purpose to the glass which she used to examine her secret heart, her hopes and fantasies and began to shape an image. “Lady Meonaith, come here and look at yourself.” Meonaith stalked up behind her and Lydella saw in the reflection, her eyes widen and her mouth form the shape of an O. “Is that truly what I look like? How you see me? I see why I would engender so much envy. I have grown even more lovely since I stepped into this place. A star-sprite needs the light to shine. Is there anything more lovely in this world?” Lydella changed the image. A man as stunning looking as Meonaith smiled back at her from the glass. Meonaith gasped. “Perhaps there is one thing. Who is he?” “I know not, but you can go to him, lady,” she said. “This mirror is a door you may step through into the place beyond.” Meonaith cast her a doubting glance, but nevertheless moved forwards and reached out to touch the mirror. Lydella stepped behind her and without another thought, shoved her through the glass. She at once changed the image to a deep dark pit and she imagined she heard the enchantress shriek as she fell down into it. Lydella drew away from the glass and ran the length of the hall to the exit. Pausing in the doorway, she closed her eyes and brought her hands together in a loud clap. The sound grew as it reverberated down the length of the hall and one by one all the mirrors shattered. She knew the mages would be angry. They would make her family pay for the damage and she would have to spend the next year or two making new mirrors to replace them. At least, she thought, she now knew the power of her own perceptions. "The Hall of Mirrors" by A E Willcox 
An ongoing contest for all members of WdC
A cNote shop with a fantastical theme. Profits go to the FSFS!
All sorts of images both still and animated. If you can't find something you like there, request a signature or banner made just for you at "Flight of Fantasy Custom Signature Shop" by A E Willcox
The FSFS Review Board is open! All WdC members can view the list on the group homepage, "Fantasy and Science Fiction Society" . FSFS Members can view the list from the homepage, Review Board page and the Hub. To post on the board you need to review at least one other item on the list.
If you are not already a member and are interested in fantasy and science fiction writing, please read through the group homepage and apply using the application form. The only pre-requisite is that you have a fantasy or science fiction item in your portfolio. If you want to advertise in the FSFS Newsletter please contact me, A E Willcox  .Thank you to all the members who submitted items to the Newsletter. Please comment on this Newsletter if you enjoyed it, or if you have any suggestions for future editions. |
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