Three academic talks: Jennifer Zwahr-Castro: Author and Character Gender in the Hugos From 2001-2020, over half of Hugo winners in this category have been women. The current study is a first step in a more nuanced understanding of gender representation among nominees in the best novel category and the central characters portrayed in those works. … Continue reading Manifestations of Gender
What is it like for marginalized or underrepresented writers to navigate submissions and rejections in short fiction? How do such writers consider editorial feedback related to voice or relatability, when it’s possible that feedback could be coming from a place of bigotry or close-mindedness rather than a reflection of their craft?
What are the best new science fiction movies across the globe? The panel will make its recommendations, and you, the audience, can add more. This is a chance to contribute to watch lists for the 2022 Hugo Awards.
Cowboy Bebop and Dune are back on screens but it’s not 1965, 1984, or 1998. Is it that everything old is new again, or is space opera just a genre that keeps on giving? If E.E. “Doc” Smith’s The Skylark of Space is the root of the tree and Asimov’s Foundation series is the trunk,… Continue reading The Phylogenetic Tree of Space Opera
This panel will discuss the range of awards and other markers of achievement on the Continent, and how they raise the profile of African authors.
Anime and manga are frequently altered during the process of translation. Changes can range from small shifts in wording for the sake of comprehension to significant changes in plot and character. How do Western publishers and media companies decide what changes to make for their English-speaking audiences? When do these changes work well, and when… Continue reading Anime and Manga in Translation
The speculative fiction anthology is one of the most popular and enduring forms of publishing in the industry. Crowdfunding and virtual productivity tools have democratized the form so that almost anyone can do it—but should they? How does the beginning anthologist solicit pieces, choose the best ones, and gently reject ones that don’t make the… Continue reading Assembling an Anthology
A single medium-sized asteroid can contain more gold and platinum than all of Earth. How do we keep the first giant hunk of space gold from crashing the world’s commodities markets? How might speculative technologies lead to creation of markets for asteroid resources?
Unapproved use of licensed material, traced artwork, copied costume patterns, digital manipulation–there are so many ways for artists to cross the line into unethical behavior when using another artist’s work as source material. How do we distinguish between inspiration, homage, and borderline theft? If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, how should artists feel… Continue reading Inspired or Copied? The Ethics of Art
Civilizations of the past have tended to be multilingual, sometimes with more than one common language along with various local languages and dialects. What are some ways to represent this diversity in a fictional text? How can linguistic diversity enhance other facets of storytelling?
