Anthology of Speculative Fiction, Volume One Read online

  ANTHOLOGY OF SPECULATIVE FICTION, VOLUME ONE

  Incorporating The Golden Age of Science Fiction anthologies and “Free Speculative Fiction Online” (featuring Asimov's Science Fiction magazine, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Analog Science Fiction and Fact, Interzone, Clarkesworld Magazine and winners of the Hugo and Nebula awards).

  The Golden Age of Science Fiction: An Anthology

  This Halcyon Classics ebook collection contains science fiction short stories by more than forty authors. Many of the stories in this collection were published during the heyday of popular science fiction magazines from the 1930s to the 1950s.

  Included within this work are stories by Poul Anderson, Jules Verne, H.G. Wells, Phillip K. Dick, Randall Garrett, Paul Ernst, Kurt Vonnegut, Jack Williamson, Phillip Jose Farmer, Lester Del Rey, Leigh Brackett, Fredric Brown, Murray Leinster, Ben Bova, and many others.

  Halcyon Classics Series

  THE GOLDEN AGE OF SCIENCE FICTION

  Free Speculative Fiction Online

  http://www.freesfonline.de/index.html

  All stories are available for free. This site does not link to pirated SF! Sites violating the non-elapsed copyright of the respective stories by making them accessible without the author's and/or publisher's explicit agreement are not included.

  The ISFDB is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution license. This means that you are free:

  to copy, distribute, display, and perform the work, (Good luck on performing bibliographic data. The costumes should be interesting.)

  to make derivative works,

  to make commercial use of the work,

  so long as attribution is made to the ISFDB, under the following conditions:

  For any reuse or distribution, you must make clear to others the license terms of this work.

  Any of these conditions can be waived if you get permission from the copyright holder.

  The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction http://www.sfsite.com/fsf/

  This is a professional magazine that began publishing in 1949 which makes it the second oldest continually publishing science fiction magazines in the country. They have one up on the oldest however, popularity. The publication is tremendously popular. It is the most widely read science fiction magazine in the country. It is consistently outstanding and publishing outstanding authors like (from their site) “Stephen King's Dark Tower, Daniel Keyes's Flowers for Algernon, and Walter M. Miller's A Canticle for Leibowitz.” This magazine is the cream of the alien crop.” Fantasy & Science Fiction magazines represents all of what's best in science fiction today.

  Analog Science Fiction and Fact http://www.analogsf.co.m/0906/issue_06.shtml

  This is a professional magazine that began publishing started publishing 1930 and is as they say “often considered the magazine where science fiction grew up.” They do it very well and have published many outstanding science fiction authors including “Isaac Asimov, Robert A. Heinlein, Poul Anderson, Spider Robinson, Lois McMaster Bujold, and Michael F. Flynn.” The publication is the oldest science fiction magazine in the country, and they are consistently nominated for award after award. This publication has done an unequivocal job over the last 80 years of keeping great science fiction writing alive in print.

  Asimov's Science Fiction http://www.asimovs.com/

  This is a professional magazine that began publishing began publishing in 1977 and is simply a high quality science fiction magazine that showcases some of the best in science fiction today. They publish great authors and the publication is one of the best science fiction magazines ever published, hands down.

  Interzone http://ttapress.com/interzone/

  Began publishing in 1982. They are the longest running science fiction magazine in the UK. They have published many greats including: “Brian Aldiss, Sarah Ash, Michael Moorcock, Bruce Sterling, William Gibson, M. John Harrison, Stephen Baxter, Iain M Banks, J.G. Ballard, Kim Newman, Alastair Reynolds, Harlan Ellison, Greg Egan,” and many more. They are an outstanding magazine that has fought the odds to keep science fiction alive.

  Clarkesworld Magazine http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/

  Clarkesworld is the newest magazines on our list established in 2006, but the magazine came on in a blaze of glory. They have won many many awards in the science fiction world, and they publish a yearly chapbook of all the stories that have appeared in their magazine. Clarkesworld is where we hope science fiction magazines are going. It is professionally done, full of outstanding science fiction writing, and devoted to creating a presence on the web and in the real world. Every science fiction writer trying to publish their stories should give serious consideration to this magazine.

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  The literature of change

  It's often said that Science Fiction is the literature of change. When a culture is undergoing a lot of changes due to scientific advances and technological developments, and expects to undergo more, it's hardly surprising if stories about these changes become popular as a way of expressing people's feelings (optimistic or otherwise) about change. Note that the changes may be in our ability to control the world, or just in our understanding of it. For example, some "post-holocaust" stories, such as Wyndham's The Chrysalids (also known as Rebirth), portray cultures that understand and control less of the world than we do; the scientific element consists of our understanding of their world, and of how it arose out of our world. Other stories offer future technologies that we can hope for based on present-day science, but haven't developed yet, such as fusion-powered spaceships. Yet others go beyond this to dazzle us with future science that differs from what is now believed, but they retain some recognisable elements of the world we live in, so we can at least believe that the world depicted in the story might some day come to be.

  This leads up to my loose definition of ScF as fiction set in a world that differs from our everyday world in a way that importantly involves science or technology. Some people add that ScF should make you think about possible future worlds and alternatives thereto, but I'm quite glad to have some fiction that's purely entertainment. If history is any guide, there will always be plenty of ScF that asks questions (and usually supplies ready-made answers) about changes in the world and the futures to which they may lead.

  About a year after inscribing the above onto my hard disk, I was reading an introduction by Isaac Asimov to a novel by a younger author and found this:

  A science fiction story must be set against a society significantly different from our own -- usually, but not necessarily, because of some change in the level of science and technology -- or it is not a science fiction story.

  He was contrasting ScF with detective stories, where criminals are caught and order is restored:

  ... the science fiction story destroys our own comfortable society. The science fiction story does not deal with the restoration of order, but with change and, ideally, with continuing change ... we leave our society and never return to it.

  The literature of science

  Another widely-held view is that ScF is fiction that describes the impact of science or technology on people. To the extent that its readers are "science buffs" (never mind whether they know any science!), this may well be the chief reason they enjoy reading it. Its heroes are often those who understand the science or technology, which can add an element of wish-fulfillment. It can also contribute to the ghastly stereotype of the ScF reader as someone with no accomplishment or merit other other than science, and no interest in the impact of art on people, or for that matter of people on people.

  ***

  One of the things that makes science fiction so pop
ular is that it means many things to many people. Some people will insist that they are not even reading science fiction when they read a Star Wars novel or a novel dealing with alternate history. That is what makes Sci-Fi so wonderful! It’s easy to love and difficult to define. What other genre has so many sub-genres? You have hard Sci-fi, often times written by people who actually were scientists. There’s Cyber Punk, adventurous Space Opera, Military Sci-Fi, Alternate History, Steam Punk, and even Space Westerns. Something for almost everybody!

  In truth, speculative fiction dates back hundreds of years but modern Sci-Fi began to develop as we know it in the 19th century with writers like H.G. Wells and Jules Verne. But it was in 1926 that Sci-fi really began to take off with the creation of the pulp magazine, Amazing Stories, the first publication devoted to science fiction. The magazine survived for nearly 80 years and helped to launch the careers of greats such as Roger Zelanzy, E.E. “Doc” Smith, Jack Williamson, and countless others.

  ***

  What is Speculative Fiction?

  Well? What is it? You don't really know do you? Well that's OK, because then there would be little point in writing this article.

  Speculative fiction is a term, attributed to Robert Heinlein in 1941, that has come to be used to collectively describe works in the genres of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror.

  But if we already have science fiction, fantasy, and horror, then why do we need to muddy the water with yet another genre description? Because speculative fiction addresses fiction that includes Weird Tales, Amazing Stories, and Fantastic Fiction. It also may include other genres, such as Mysteries, Alternate Histories, and Historical Fiction. Speculative fiction can be a collective term to describe works of science fiction, fantasy, and horror and also addresses works that are not science fiction, fantasy, or horror, yet don't rightly belong to the other genres.

  Speculative fiction is also more than the collective title for works of horror, science fiction, and fantasy. The term also embraces works that don't fit neatly into the separate genres. Tarzan. Television's Early Edition. Stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Tales that span the science fiction, fantasy, and horror genres. Stranger in a Strange Land. The Twilight Zone. Stories by Edgar Allen Poe. Tales that have been labelled simply as 'weird' or 'adventure' or 'amazing' because there was no proper place to put them. Stories on the fringe.

  When you've come across a story or movie or game that both is and isn't science fiction, fantasy, and/or horror, then you've discovered speculative fiction.

  Examples of speculative fiction may run the gamut from the outright weird, such as in the short stories 'The Call of Cthulhu' by H.P. Lovecraft or 'The Metamorphoses' by Kafka, to the frighteningly possible, such as in the movie 'Jaws' directed by Steven Spielberg.

  Speculative Fiction is Everywhere

  Nearly every major industry has some little niche that produces content for or about speculative fiction. From an obvious industry such as cinema or toys, to industries that are not quite so obvious such as the manufacture of clothing and jewelry (costuming).

  Nearly all content and media created for children contains some aspect of speculative fiction, such as talking animals, magic, or monsters. When speaking of children's literature it's almost impossible not to find speculative fiction in the form of fantasy or science fiction.

  The majority of computer game titles produced, whether for personal computer or gaming consoles, also contain some element of speculative fiction. Whether it be a science fiction strategy game like Sid Meyer's Alpha Centauri or a fantasy based first person role-playing game like Everquest.

  And I defy you to find a single pen and paper role-playing game that doesn't draw on some element of speculative fiction. There may be one, but I wouldn't hold my breath looking for it.

  Speculative Fiction is everywhere. It has invaded our lives... but what is it? We've contacted various people in the speculative fiction industry to profess their knowledge of the question... What is Speculative Fiction?

  David Bowlin of ShadowKeep Magazine

  'Speculative fiction is a world that writers create, where anything can happen. It is a place beyond reality, a place that could have been, or might have been, if only the rules of the universe were altered just a bit. Speculative fiction goes beyond the horror of everyday life and takes the reader (and writer) into a world of magic, fantasy, science. It is a world where you leave part of yourself behind when you return to the universe as we know it, the so-called real world. Speculative fiction defines the best in humanity: imagination, and the sharing of it with others.'

  The Staff of Planet Magazine [http://www.planetmag.com/

  ]

  Tom Wagner, associate editor

  Speculative fiction is the roadmap to tomorrow and the bible for beyond.

  Romeo Esparrago, associate editor, art and graphics

  Speculative fiction is fuel for the future and whets the appetite of the eaters of words.

  Andy McCann, editor

  Speculative fiction is the cheapest way to travel, and sometimes the only way. It's doubtful I'll ever travel in space in my lifetime, not only because of technology, cost, and opportunity issues but also because I sometimes get carsick. I'd never survive those centrifugal-force machines for astronauts-in-training. Vomiting in a spacesuit must be a special kind of misery, especially if one keeps fainting from the acceleration. However, if offered the chance, I'd probably go anyway (assuming permission from The Wife). Until that day, though, I'll just keep picking up SF paperbacks and continuing to fly right on out into deep space. And if I don't feel like flying, I can always dig into some Tolkien, Robert E. Howard, or Tim Powers, and instantaneously transport to a world of magic, heroes, and demons.

  Speculative fiction is stimulation for the soul, whether reading it or writing it. Spec Fic can take you out of your daily routine and reawaken a sense of mystery and purpose and wider meaning in the world.

  Speculative fiction is preparation for all futures. One of the purposes of science fiction, particularly hard SF, is to extrapolate from today and try to anticipate where we all will be one day, both as people and as societies. In that way, we can be better prepared for whatever comes, good or bad. That purpose doesn't apply for much of the rest of the broader category of Spec Fic, unless there are, as some claim, infinite universes -- thus maybe all fantasy and horror stories are merely reporting actual events in other worlds, far down the chain of alternate Earths (so I guess that's where authors get their ideas). Even so, speculative fiction stories, however fanciful, can have a big emotional and inspirational impact, teaching us much about ethics, bravery, kindness, good, and evil.

  Lida E. Quillen of Twilight Times

  Some experts define speculative fiction as 'genre' fiction. A lot of readers think speculative fiction consists of science fiction and fantasy only. Other readers include horror, mystery and romance.

  To me, it is writing that pushes the boundaries of the imagination. A good speculative fiction story would make you think, provide a new insight into human nature or even give you a new outlook on life. You can find such insights in the literature of today, such as cross-genre, New Age, magic realism and slipstream works as well as SF/F.

  Read the works of such authors as Steve Lazarowitz, Kate Saundby, Jon F. Baxley, Patrick Welch, Melissa Michaels, Lazette Gifford, Sharon Lee, Alex Roces, Linda Suzane and Patricia L.White and you'll discover well written and entertaining speculative fiction.

  Steve Tully of Anotherealm.com

  It is a format that informs, delights and educates a reader. It tells a story that is pleasing to the reader and at the same time opens disturbing questions. Ones that the reader may not be able to frame on their own, or even accept as valid questions in the context of their daily life.

  It opens our minds to the greatness that is the human race. Even with all our flaws. Even in spite of our flaws. Because of our flaws.

  It asks the questions that need to be asked, 'What is it to be human? Why does
that even matter?

  Showing our weaknesses and our strengths at the same time. The reader is left to balance all comments within their own world view. What is good? What is bad and why is this so?

  The great classics of Speculative fiction have always taken the human point of view. Putting ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances.

  They reacted as they were wont to do in their times. Within the boundaries they were given by society at that time. But the great leap of reason and humanity came when they rose above their circumstance and became extraordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. They rose above the moment. They became more human than before.

  When we the reader can identify with the main character, then we are lifted to the level of that character. We, in effect, become, 'That Hero'. 'A Hero', 'Any Hero'. We become more than we are by living the life on the pages that we read.

  This causes change in our own lives on a basic level that defies definition. It moves the soul to a better place. This is what all writers strive for. It is what all readers recognize inherently. It makes us more human.

  It is not about 'Magic Swords' or even 'Shining Blast Tubes'. It is about humanity and what that really means to us all. Or even if it does mean anything at all to any of us.

  So, what is 'Speculative Fiction'? It's about you and me.

  At our best and at our worst. It's about that screen in your head. That one you saw as you read that story that gets you that tight spot in your chest because you know what it meant. It's about that blurry vision when the Hero dies and you know the dream does too.