The Sunday Re-Blog – The Definition of Fantasy

10/06/2013 Leave a comment

If I really want to talk about differences between Science Fiction and Fantasy, then I really need to have solid definitions of the two. I recently gave my working definition of Science Fiction, from one of Science Fiction’s greatest practitioners – Frank Herbert. So now, we need a definition for Fantasy.

So why not get that definition from J.R.R. Tolkien?

I don’t know the source, except that I found it circulating on Facebook. There is a signature in the lower left, so I will let that speak for the creator of this image. I found this on Doctor Who and the T.A.R.D.I.S. on Facebook, but this is mostly just a Facebook page that shares images from the fandoms, mostly Doctor Who. Actually, one I recommend, just know that there’s a lot of images that they share. Be ready.

Anyway, after the jump, check out the definition of Fantasy! Read more of this post

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The Sunday Re-Blog – The Definition of Science Fiction

09/29/2013 Leave a comment

If it wasn’t obvious so far, one of my favorite things is Science Fiction. The worlds we create, that become science fiction, are often so much fun. They are excellent ways to explore the world that we know and live in, as well as to extrapolate the future or what we might do in a wholly new situation.

For instance, here on Comparative Geeks, we look at how science fiction can inform our current world and our near future, how it can make us look differently at current issues or political situations. You can see our posts like this under the heading Science Fiction Today: https://comparativegeeks.wordpress.com/category/science-fiction/science-fiction-today/

I have also started looking at how science fiction and religion interact. Often, religion is strangely absent from science fiction – or is looked at as the mythology of the past. In particular, I have been working from a perspective in a particular science fiction novel, A Case of Conscience by James Blish. His thought was that the existence of aliens would be particularly troublesome to meld with faith. See my posts on this and others like it in Science Fiction and Religion: https://comparativegeeks.wordpress.com/category/science-fiction/science-fiction-and-religion/

However, underlying all of this is a singular question: What is science fiction? What does it mean, and what are we doing when we produce it, or enjoy it? I have a favorite definition, so let’s look at that, and at a few examples. Read more of this post

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The Sunday (Tuesday) Re-Blog – Joss Whedon and the Golden Age

09/24/2013 Leave a comment

In honor of Agents of SHIELD debuting tonight, here is one of the most fun posts I’ve written over on Comparative Geeks. Check out the original and all of our stuff on Comparative Geeks here: http://wp.me/p35Pkn-oR

Alright, so I have to say: I think we are entering into a Golden Age of creativity in our world today. A world where we are running into new technologies, new ways of doing entertainment, new ways of approaching storytelling. A world where there is so much quantity, but we still value the quality so much.

I submit to you that this, the world we are moving into, the Day and Age, the Zeitgeist – for the geeks, the barometer of this has to be the success of Joss Whedon.

The shirt is from pvponline.com, but it's all over the Internet by now...
The shirt is from pvponline.com, but it’s all over the Internet by now…

A man who, constantly, has been shut down by the establishment. And who, when given the chance, creates the most beloved pieces of geekdom being produced today, outside of perhaps Doctor Who. Perhaps.

So join me for a few moments to consider where Joss Whedon has been, and where he has gotten to now, director of one of the highest grossing movies ever made. Read more of this post

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Something About This Worked – Part 3

05/12/2013 2 Comments

This is a screenshot of the first few lines of Google Image results for the term - The Nine Alignments. I come up twice from comparativegeeks.wordpress.com!

This is a screenshot of the first few lines of Google Image results for the term – The Nine Alignments. I come up twice from comparativegeeks.wordpress.com!

So here’s some more evidence that something we’re doing is working – over on Comparative Geeks. Time to check in on the experiment I have had going on these last weeks.

So what has the last month looked like?

  • Comparative Geeks – Character Studies Truncated: Last 30 days, 45 views
  • DBCII – Something About This Worked, Parts 1 and 2: Total, 6 views

I am also not seeing any search terms that turned these posts up, although with 6 views, that’s not surprising.

This experiment is intriguing in that it’s not turning anything up here in the slightest. Also: frustrating. I had said that the next experiment was the photos with the tags, so here we go!

Read more of this post

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The Sunday Re-Blog – The Hero’s Progress

04/28/2013 Leave a comment

So last week, I did a re-blog of a list I had written, but I used the PressThis share feature, and that really does not give you much to work with as far as a post. It’s basically a one-liner link. I think you should check it out, it’s a good list of epic scifi and fantasy series.

This week, I will try to use this again, only this time by adding this text, and we’ll see how that works.

As explanation, this post was called The Hero’s Progress, and it was a theory based on plots and how we overuse some. Also check out the one I link to early on, my wife’s post about the recent controversies about the Damsel in Distress trope.

If you’re writing, think twice before falling for: The Hero’s Progress.

The Hero’s Progress.

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