Search Results for: tale covers

The Golden Age of Science Fiction: The 1973 Hugo Award for Best Novella: “The Word for World is Forest,” by Ursula K. Le Guin

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The Word for World Is Forest (Berkley Medallion, 1976). Cover by Richard Powers The great Ursula K. Le Guin won the Hugo Award for Best Novella in 1973, for “The Word for World is Forest,” which first appeared in Harlan Ellison’s anthology Again, Dangerous Visions. The story had been written several years earlier, and there exists a letter from Le Guin expressing her frustration with the time it took Ellison to get the story into print. “The Word for World…

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Celebrating a Decade of Excellence: Clarkesworld Year Ten, Volumes One & Two, edited by Neil Clarke and Sean Wallace

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Covers by Shichigoro-Shingo and Rudy Faber Clarkesworld editors Neil Clarke and Sean Wallace have had a busy year. For one thing, they’ve published a full 12 issues of one of the most acclaimed science fiction magazines on the planet. For another, there’s all those conventions, nominations, and shiny awards to keep them occupied — including a Best Editor Hugo nomination for Neil, a Hugo nomination for Simone Heller’s “When We Were Starless” (Clarkesworld 145, October 2018), and a World Fantasy…

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Vintage Treasures: The Astounding-Analog Reader edited by Harry Harrison and Brian W. Aldiss

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The Astounding-Analog Reader (Sphere 1972 and 1973). Covers by unknown (left) and Chris Foss (right) I used to scoff at the idea of online bookstores. How will you browse for books?, I demanded to know. You’ll never replace that wonderful moment of discovery, of serendipity, finding a treasure you weren’t looking for, which happens all the time in great bookstores. Of course, these days I find books online all the time. I’m a huge fan of Harry Harrison and Brian W. Aldiss’s…

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New Treasures: Of Wars, and Memories, and Starlight by Aliette de Bodard

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Cover by Maurizio Manzieri I met Aliette de Bodard at the Nebulas weekend in 2015, on the way to a party in the Palmer House hotel, and we ended up chatting for about 20 minutes. She was charming, articulate, humble, and a very stylish dresser. And you know, that’s just not a combo you see very often, especially at a science fiction convention. Anyway, she’s also won, like, ALL THE AWARDS. Her Universe of Xuya series may be the most honored SF story…

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A Sci Fi / Fantasy Hybrid with a Middle Eastern Ambiance: Mirage by Somaiya Daud

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The nameless young Andalaan boy has yet to reach his majority, so he doesn’t have his face tattoos yet. But that’s what makes him a perfect assassin. The evil Vath invaders won’t be able to trace him back to his family and tribe. For his whole young life, the boy has known the cruelty of the Vath. If he kills their crown princess, he’ll win a cottage for his family and a husband for his sister. He knows it’s a…

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Explorers, Mathematicians, and Airwalkers: November/December Print SF Magazines

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Covers by Tuomas Korpi, Donato Giancola, and Bob Eggleton The end-of-year crop of print magazines contains some very promising fiction from Michael Swanwick, James Morrow, James Patrick Kelly, Benjamin Rosenbaum, M. Rickert, Jerry Oltion, Mark W. Tiedemann, Jay O’Connell, Allen M. Steele, R. Garcia y Robertson, Harry Turtledove, James Gunn, and many others — including Black Gate‘s new short fiction reviewer, James Van Pelt. But I think my favorite piece this month was Sheila Williams’ editorial, “A Sadder and Wiser Woman,”…

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Blogging Marvel’s Master of Kung Fu, Part Nine

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Master of Kung Fu Annual #1 was a reworking of what would have been Giant-Size Master of Kung Fu #5 had Marvel’s short-lived line of quarterly publications not been prematurely discontinued. As it stands it was the only King-Size Annual Marvel published for the series. Marvel Annuals were generally a mixed bag and this is no exception. A few select ones offered truly special longer stories which were a delight for loyal readers, but most were either hurriedly produced or…

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Future Treasures: The Shadow Saint, Book 2 of The Black Iron Legacy by Gareth Hanrahan

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Covers by Richard Anderson We’ve covered a surprising number of titles by Gareth Hanrahan here at Black Gate… but most of them haven’t been novels. He made a name for himself first in the gaming industry, with many releases that greatly impressed me for Ashen Stars, 13th Age, Trail of Cthulhu, and Traveller. But his breakout book was definitely his debut novel The Gutter Prayer, the opening title in The Black Iron Legacy series. Publishers Weekly praised its “thrilling action sequences…

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Why We Write: Rogue Blades Foundation and the Future of Heroic Literature

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Covers: Johnney Perkins, Dleoblack, Didier Normand Fantasy readers, like those who dwell together here at Black Gate, are long familiar with notions of heroes and the heroic. Each of us might have our own ideas about what makes a hero, but we would likely find common ground in a discussion of the matter. That being said, is there any doubt our world today is in need of heroes? Heroes do continue to exist in our entertainment, but often enough they…

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Vintage Treasures: The Tomorrow’s Warfare Anthologies, edited by Joe Haldeman, Charles G. Waugh, and Martin Harry Greenberg

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Covers by Walter Velez One of the things I miss about modern publishing is mass market anthologies. There’s still loads of anthologies being published, of course — we’ve covered dozens in just the last few months — but most come from small presses, and all of them are in hardcover or trade paperback. Casual buyers just don’t buy short fiction these days. Certainly not in enough volume to make inexpensive paperback anthologies viable, anyway. Which is a shame, since there were a ton…

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