A review. 700 words, 4-minute read. Rogue Moon, A Review By Ray Tabler Rogue Moon is a 1960 science fiction novel by Algis Budrys, and a very strange read from the perspective of 65 years after publication. I’m not a scholar of Budrys’ work, and have only sipped at his…
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Reactionless Drives
Fiction & Fact. Essay. 1900 Words, 10-minute read. Reactionless Drives By Ray Tabler A staple of science fiction is the reactionless drive. That is, a means of propulsion which moves a space ship without the use of rockets or jets. As Matthew McConaughey said in the movie Interstellar, “Newton’s third…
Sci-Fi on Broadway
Who says music and science fiction don’t mix? Essay. 800 words, 4-minute read. Sci-Fi on Broadway By Ray Tabler Science fiction, and fantasy, are usually associated with serious media. Whether hard SF, dystopia, cyberpunk, epic or dark fantasy, tough subject matter, dealing with the perils of new technology or the…
Ray’s on the Hidden Gems/Fully Booked podcast!
A discussion about writing positive science fiction. I recently spoke with Craig Tuch and Roland Hulme of Hidden Gems about writing positive science fiction. You can be access the video and audio here: https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast/sci-fi-crafting-positive-futures I hope you tune in, and enjoy the conversation. —- Ray.
Art As a World Building Tool
The finish carpentry of world building. Essay. 1600 words. 8-minute read. Art As a World Building Tool By Ray Tabler When telling a science fiction or fantasy tale, there are any number of tools which can be employed to set the scene for the reader/viewer. Flying cars, elves, robots, dragons,…
Containment Protocol Postmortem
Containment Protocol Postmortem By Ray Tabler Containment Protocol is my first serialized novel on Substack, and it ought to have taught me a thing or two. Time will tell if the lessons sink in, or sail in one ear and out the other like so much of my education. Never…
Dark Star’s Number 20
Dark Star’s Number 20 By Ray Tabler Not long ago, I posted about standout minor characters in science fiction and fantasy. Then I posted again about one I’d neglected to mention. As time goes on, more and more of these side-plot heroes come to mind. So, this might become a semi-regular thing. Apparently good…
Flopaganda
Flopaganda By Ray Tabler In the 1950s, Jean Shepherd was a New York City radio host, with a large following. Later on, Shepherd co-scripted the movie A Christmas Story, based on his childhood. Shepherd was of the opinion that the celebrated lists of best-seller books were too easy to manipulate….
What’s My Line?
What’s My Line? Professions in Science fiction & fantasy. Essay. 900 words, 5-minute read. Everybody’s got to do something to put food on the table. Fictional characters are no exception. What those jobs are sometimes tells us something about the character. Or maybe it tells us something about us. In…
Book Lengths Over the Years
Book Lengths Over the Years By Ray Tabler Since writing my first novel, the subject of word counts has haunted me. In short, I struggle to write long books. This is a problem these days, because long books are in vogue. Publishers prefer word counts north of 80,000. The farther…