Playing with my new iPhone and the Camera+ app (and getting all supercilious about it, apparently … ).
The Care and Handling of (Dis)Belief
In discussions on the literature of the fantastic – science fiction, fantasy, horror and such – you sometimes hear the term ‘suspension of disbelief.’ The idea is that the writer makes the reader accept things that (most) would assume to be impossible, such as dragons, ray guns or a working postal system. So far so good, but it turns out that this apparently innocuous little term is enough to cause trouble.
“NEVER touch this button”. Doesn’t it make your fingers itch … ?
Litteralund again
Just a few lines to say that my job as a moderator at Litteralund, the Swedish festival for children’s and YA literature, went well. The session was titled ‘Four Nuances of Fantasy,’ and I began by briefly interviewing Nene Ormes, Elin Fahlstedt, Niklas Krog and Maria Turtschaninoff. Then we had an interesting discussion on how to create the fantastic in text and images, different kinds of fantasy, what we are looking for in the fantastic, and so forth.
As for the festival itself, it was great fun. The session on the current state of the YA novel was one of many highlights, as was the interview with writer and artist Johan Unenge, the Swedish reading ambassador. Literacy levels are dropping, and a national jury has appointed the reading ambassador to do something about it. I wish him the best of luck.
Fun and Games at the Dentist’s
Strange things tend to happen to my girlfriend Erika. A few weeks ago she called her dentist to change an appointment for some fairly simple dental work, gave her name and waited for the lady at the other end to find her in the computer.
Litteralund approaches
And now for something completely different: we’re getting close to Litteralund, the Swedish festival for literature aimed at children and young adults. Come April 20, I will be in Lund to moderate a discussion between four fantasy authors: Elin Fahlstedt, Niklas Krog, Nene Ormes and Maria Turtschaninoff, four (very) different voices within the field of fantastic literature. The session blurb says ‘a conversation about magical doors to odd realities,’ and that’s what we will be aiming for. How do you transport the reader elsewhere (or even elsewhen), and is it more difficult in countries without the immense fantasy tradition of, say, the UK? This should be interesting – if you’re in the neighbourhood, don’t miss it!
‘With great power comes great responsibility’
That’s the catch phrase of old Uncle Ben
If you missed it don’t worry — they’ll say the line
Again and again and again
The Joys of Narrative Amnesia
It is time for my nerdiest post to date. You see, I have just been reminded of an annoying phenomenon in superhero comics – writers ignoring nuances in earlier parts of the plot in order to make the end fit the tale. ‘Writers?’ I hear you gasp. Writers, these stalwart defenders of narrative integrity? Read on.
The Passing of an ICFA
ICFA (which still stands for the International Conference on the Fantastic in the Arts) is over for this year. The book room has been dismantled, the pool bar is deserted and the crowds of badge-wearing academics and authors are gone from the hotel. It was an interesting year, though. Several good papers on the monstrous, on comics, Tolkien’s works and other worthy topics, and a lot of food for thought during pool-side discussions. My reading of a short-short SF story — ‘Three Blind MegaMice’ — went over well.
And I only bought four books, and only received four more at different functions, so I should be able to get them all home properly … There was more to be had, as this image by ICFA veteran Stefan Ekman clearly shows.
Report from ICFA
Dear me — no new posts for two months! There were reasons (a few of them are hinted at in ‘A Nightmare Before Christmas’), but I hope to be a more reliable blogger in the future. To begin with, here is a brief report from the ongoing International Conference on the Fantastic in the Arts (ICFA) in Orlando, Florida.
