The Offworld Report: June 2003

Michael Swanwick and Tad Williams are interviewed, Berman, Braga and Bakula on how they finished the third season of Enterprise, and Michael Moorcock looks at the elements of science fiction that just keep on coming true.

You may not realize it, but the international op-ed site Blue Ear, which bills itself as A Global Journal for Our Time, appoints an author each month in what it calls its Symposium Program. The site then focuses on the works of said author, who makes herself/himself available for questions and debate - much as in a discussion panel, in fact.

Well, the author they've appointed for the month of July is none other than old SFF hand John Grant.

In addition the Blue Ear editor, Ethan Casey, is commissioning a fantasy serial from John G., which he’s to write in twice-weekly instalments starting in July and running for about three months.

The novel, ‘The Dragons of Manhattan’, is to be a fantasticated satire our Mr Grant has been thinking about penning for quite some while now.

So this July, come and keep John Grant company over on www.blueear.com

INTERVIEWS

The Earth Bone is connected to the …
Interview with Michael Swanwick talking about his work ‘Bones of the Earth’.

The Way of the Willis
Author Connie Willis interviewed by Nick Gevers.

Good Wood
Chris Wooding interviewed about his novel The Weavers of Saramyr.

A Tad Longer
Fantasy writer Tad Williams interviewed by Iain Emsley.

A Varley Good Show
SF author John Varley in discussion.

The Art of Becoming
An interview with SFF cover artist John Picacio.

More Elric, Vicar?
Alan Wall in Conversation with Michael Moorcock.

Our Most Glorious Enterprise
Berman, Braga and Bakula on how they finished the third season of Enterprise

Michel Gagné Interviewed
An interview with the illustrator and author of the book ‘The Towers of Numar’.

ARTICLES

The Science Fiction That Came True
Author Michael Moorcock looks at the elements of science fiction that just keep on coming true, long after they’ve been penned by the likes of Clarke and J.G. Ballard.

SF Nooky
Jed Hartman asks where are all the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transsexual, intersexed, polyamorous and kinky people in the future?

Plat for the Future
This article argues if you let fringe groups explore the stars, the result will be shockingly weird cultures for spacefarers to encounter.

Square Pegs, Triangular Holes
Scott Nicholson - author of The Red Church - looks at the capriciousness of genre classification when it comes to matters SFF.

The Matrix Worry
This article argues that 'The Matrix Reloaded' should really worry America's leaders, as the paranoid philosophy the film proposes now echoes a widespread feeling of helplessness in the US.

FICTION

Firewatch
A new novelette by Connie Willis.

Router by Charles Stross
Nominated for the British Science Fiction Association Award for Best Short Fiction.

The Island of Varos, by Severna Park
Early in the Occupation when the Conqueros came, my mother painted her birds in secret. Materials were scarce so she resorted to the old technique of distilling color from the night air. With an illustration by Janet Chui.

Jailwise: by Lucius Shepard
A criminal ends up in an odd prison called Diamond Bar, where not much is what it actually appears to be.

AWARDS

Sturgeon’s announced
The 2003 Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Awards for best short SF of the year have been announced.

2003 Italias
The 2003 Italia Awards for best SF published in Italy were presented on May 3 at ITALCON 29/Saga 2003 in the Republic of San Marino, Italy.

Stoking the Fires
Winners of the 2003 Bram Stoker Awards for best horror announced.

MEDIA

Greek for Geeks
Is the Matrix more classic Homer than classic science fiction?

Cowboy Bebop: The Movie
Japan's popular TV show receives a feature film treatment.

WEIRD SCIENCE & REAL SCIENCE

Europe Wants to Overtake NASA
The European Space Agency pledges a whole heap of Euros to guarantee its independent access to space. Should NASA be worried?

DIY Missile Lord in his NZ-based Lair
A New Zealand man says he is building a cruise missile in his garage with parts purchased on the Web for less than $5,000.

Where’s My Robo Slave?
Robots may yet morph from science fiction to fact.

Did SARS Arrive from Space?
As the hunt for the source of SARS continues, some scientists think that the virus may not be a native of the Terran ecosphere. Is SARS from space?

Rocky Road to Mars
The day the UK's Beagle Mars lander almost died

Building the Smarter Jarhead
According to the U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center, their prototype for the high-tech grunt of the future includes a battle suit that monitor vital signs and plugs them into a net of satellites, unmanned planes and robot vehicles.

Tomorrow’s Soldier Needs Debugging
Nanotechnology might help protect 22^nd Century marines from bullets and beam weapons; but for now, simply keeping grunts dry would be a grand little accomplishment.

Study Sheds Light on Dark Matter
Dark matter is the most prevalent material in the galaxy – even if it can't be seen and no one knows what it is.

Humanity Eats Humble Pie
Heck, if the genes of mice and men are almost identical, just how do the two species differ?

Private Spacecraft Tested
Scaled Composites, one of the competitors for the X-prize, has carried out a test flight of its SpaceShipOne prototype.

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Where there's a Wil Author Wil McCarthy on impostor syndrome, and why that while he likes the hard stuff - the Egan and Vinge and Linda Nagata - he also likes a lot of the softer stuff as well, the fantasy and slipstream ... if it's thoughtfully drawn. (AUTHOR INTERVIEWS) Star Wars Shattered Author Matthew Stover, author of Star Wars: Shatterpoint, on the first novel in a new series to be set during the Clone Wars, and why he really wanted a funny droid for comic relief. (AUTHOR INTERVIEWS) Starring The Man With One Name As Fangorn, illustrator Chris Baker enjoys an enviable reputation as a fantasy artist: not only is his art highly respected but he works in a diversity of styles, so that one's never sure quite where his puckish muse is going to take him next. (INTERVIEWS) Fowler and Fisher at FantasyCon Christopher Fowler and Catherine Fisher are guests of honour at this year's FantasyCon in November. Also attending this fine British con are Ramsey Campbell, Anne Gay, Stephen Jones, Tim Lebbon, Stan Nicholls, Telos Publishing, Alchemy Press, among others. (NEWS) The Horror, The Horror The 2003 International Horror Guild awards recognizing outstanding achievements in the field of horror and dark fantasy from the year 2002 have been announced. (NEWS) Waterworld Revisited If an asteroid crashes into the Earth, it is likely to splash down somewhere in the oceans that cover 70 percent of the planet's surface. The result? A massive tsunami sweeping the Atlantic Coast, says this new research. (NEWS) The Offworld Report: June 2003 Michael Swanwick and Tad Williams are interviewed, Berman, Braga and Bakula on how they finished the third season of Enterprise, and Michael Moorcock looks at the elements of science fiction that just keep on coming true. (NEWS) The Scottish Revolution Scottish SF author Ken MacLeod ponders the twists and turns of fate that made capitalist development finally and fully possible in Scotland and irreversible in Britain as a whole. (COMMENT) Finding Nemo In the movie Finding Nemo, our Frank finds a vibrant stroke of color and candidness in a simple little story based in Australia's Great Barrier Reef regarding the emotional connection between a worried father and his free-spirited son ... who both happen to be clownfish. (FILM REVIEWS) Bruce Almighty In the Christian cut-up comedy Bruce Almighty, the conscientious Carrey is ready to embrace the wacky wonderment of his comedy roots once again by returning to the gawky goings-on that garnered him a cult following amongst the Ace Ventura crowd ages ago. (FILM REVIEWS)

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