Ansible 347 -- June 2016 [long]

[David Langford]

ANSIBLE 347
JUNE 2016

From DAVID LANGFORD, 94 London Road, Reading, Berks, RG1 5AU, UK. Website
news.ansible.uk. ISSN 0265-9816 (print); 1740-942X (e). Available for SAE
or the thing that is neither god nor beast.

[NET NOTE. See http://news.ansible.uk/a347.html for the nice HTML version.
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A WORD FROM OUR SPONSOR. The latest Langford ebook from Ansible Editions is
_Starcombing_ (introduction by Adam Roberts!), slightly expanded from the
print edition. See ae.ansible.uk/?t=starcombing.


### THE THIRTY-FIRST OF JUNE ###

JOHN GILBERT of _Fear_ magazine writes: 'The deed is done. I have signed a
Heads of Agreement giving 55% of my rights in _Fear_ to The Brighthelm
Group, a publisher in Brighton. They will return _Fear_ to print in July
and have appointed me Editorial Director of the magazine with immediate
effect on a retainer with a share of an Assistant Editor, Designer and Ad
Manager. The mag will be published every two months and the publisher will
start working on Smiths etc. It's pretty much the deal I had with Newsfield
but I have a much better idea of print and publishing than I had then. The
plan is that if the mag succeeds I go full time as publisher of all their
mags.' (Facebook, 6 May)

URSULA K. LE GUIN broadens our scope: 'I don't know if Thog is interested
in opening his Masterclass to anyone outside science fiction, let alone the
writer some people call The Master. But I know he likes the more violent
anatomical disjunctions and peculiarities, and humbly offer him this one,
from Chapter 30 of _The Awkward Age_ by Henry James (p.301 in the 1981
Penguin Modern Classics edition): "'But we have, you know, as Van says,
gone to pieces' she went on, twisting her pretty head and tossing it back
over her shoulder to an auditor of whose approach to her from behind,
though it was impossible she should have seen him, she had visibly, within
a minute, become aware." I can't tell you the joy this passage gave me, as
by page 301 I was in danger of tossing the book back over my shoulder into
a fireplace of whose location, though I might be uncertain, I had become
willing to imagine, as offering me a final, if less than admirable, escape
from endless thickets of clauses introducing incomprehensibly allusive
conversations carried on by disagreeable people, among whom the owner of
the pretty head is, perhaps, the most tedious.' (6 May)

ROBERT SILVERBERG had a bad heart attack on 9 May while visiting Siena,
Italy. He reports: 'Repairs performed, I am home now, and all seems well,
though as of this morning it appears recovery will be slow. I do expect to
attend the worldcon.' (16 May)

ANDY WEIR struggled to retain his cool on receiving an official US Congress
invitation to testify at a hearing of the Space Subcommittee of the House
Committee on Science, Space and Technology. The 18 May hearing was titled
_Next Steps to Mars: Deep Space Habitat_. (Facebook, 11 May) Hal O'Brien
felt this item should be headlined 'Author Hauled Before Congressional
Committee for Writing Novel'.

TERRI WINDLING gave the annual Tolkien Lecture at Pembroke College, Oxford,
on 26 May -- news that came too late for the May _Ansible_.


### CONQUIAN ###

10 Jun [] BRITISH FANTASY SOCIETY SOCIAL, The Fine Line Bow, 1 Bow
Churchyard, London, EC4M 9DQ. 7pm-11pm. Free; all welcome.

15 Jun [] THE THING ITSELF (discussion), Great Saint Mary's, Cambridge.
With Alan Jacobs, Adam Roberts, Francis Spufford and Rowan Williams.
7:30pm-8:30pm. Free. See tinyurl.com/zn6wv7e.

16-18 Jun [] ROALD DAHL CONFERENCE, Cardiff University. Call for papers
deadline was 31 January. See dahlconferencecardiff.weebly.com.

22 Jun [] BSFA OPEN MEETING, Artillery Arms, 102 Bunhill Row, London, EC1Y
8ND. 5/6pm for 7pm. With Charles Stross. Free.

25 Jun [] BSFA/SF FOUNDATION mini-convention & AGMs, Lecture Theatre 1,
Blackett Laboratory, Imperial College, London, SW7 2AZ. GoH David A. Hardy,
Liz Williams. 9:30am-4:30pm. Free; all welcome.

28-29 Jun [] SCIENCE FOR FICTION, Imperial College, London. Science
presentations _for published authors only_. Pounds30 including catering.
Contact Dave Clements, d dot clements at imperial dot ac dot uk.

28-30 Jun [] SFRA/CRSF CONFERENCE, Rendall Building, Liverpool University.
Pounds169.99 inc banquet. See tinyurl.com/hdryznq.

30 Jun - 29 Aug [] DAYDREAMING WITH STANLEY KUBRICK (exhibition), Somerset
House, London. 10am-6pm. Pounds12.50; Pounds9.50 concessions.

3 Jul [] TOLKIEN SOCIETY SEMINAR, Hilton Hotel, Leeds, LS1 4BX. Pounds20.
See www.tolkiensociety.org/events/tolkien-society-seminar-2016.

4-5 Jul [] GLOBAL FANTASTIKA (conference), Lancaster University. See
fantastikaconference.wordpress.com.

12-14 Aug [] NINE WORLDS GEEKFEST (multimedia), Novotel London West,
Hammersmith, London. Pounds100 reg, _rising to Pounds115 on 1 July_; 5-15s
Pounds33; under-5s free. Book online at nineworlds.co.uk.

17-21 Aug [] MIDAMERICON II (74th Worldcon), Kansas City, MO, USA. $210
reg; $100 YA/active military service; $60 under-16s; $50 supp. Rates will
rise at the door. See midamericon2.org for more.

21 Aug [] WORCESTER COMIC CON, Worcester Arena. Tickets Pounds10 from 11am,
Pounds15 from 10am. See www.worcester-comiccon.com.

26-28 Aug [] STARBURST FILM FESTIVAL, MMU Student Union, Manchester.
Pounds60 'early bird', then Pounds99. See www.starburstfilmfest.co.uk.

29 Oct [] BRISTOLCON, Doubletree Hotel, Bristol city centre. _Now Pounds25
reg_; Pounds30 at the door. Cheques to 18 High Leaze Road, Patchway,
Bristol BS34 5AF. See also www.bristolcon.org.

4-6 Nov [] BCON (Eurocon), Barcelona, Spain. Euro35 reg; under-25s Euro10;
under-16s free. Register at www.eurocon2016.org. 'Bcon warns that members
are joining very fast from Spain itself and that the cap is 800. Fans from
other European countries are urged to join now. Late and at-door
memberships are unlikely to be possible.'

RUMBLINGS. _Hugo and Retro Hugo Voting_ opened on 15 May 2016, though there
were some initial difficulties with the online form. Voting closes on 31
July. See midamericon2.org/home/hugo-awards-and-wsfs/.


### INFINITELY IMPROBABLE ###

AS OTHERS SEE US. 'People buy romance novels, sci-fi and other genres
because they know they will encounter no unhappiness, no depression, no
angst, no killings, no family conflict, etc., the way they will in all of
modern fiction.' (_New York Times Book Review_, 8 May) [JB]
'Written at the height of Britain's imperial project, those 23 little
tales are really a primer for navigating the merciless currents of amoral
capitalism'. (Subhead for 'Into the dystopian world of Beatrix Potter' by
Kathryn Hughes, _Guardian_, 10 May) [PE]

AWARDS. _British Book Industry:_ BOOK OF THE YEAR Andrew Michael Hurley,
_The Loney_. CHILDREN'S David Solomons, _My Brother is a Superhero_.
_Compton Crook_ (sf/fantasy debut novel): Fran Wilde, _Updraft_.
_Fanzine Activity Achievement_ (FAAn): GENZINE (tie) _Chunga_ and
_Raucous Caucus_. PERSONAL ZINE _Vibrator_. SPECIAL PUBLICATION _The MOTA
Reader_. WEBSITE eFanzines.com. WRITER Roy Kettle. ARTIST Steve Stiles.
LETTERHACK Paul Skelton. FANZINE COVER D. West with Harry Bell, _Raucous
Caucus_ 4. #1 FAN FACE Dan Steffan. LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT John Bangsund.
_Nebulas._ NOVEL Naomi Novik _Uprooted_. NOVELLA Nnedi Okorafor,
_Binti_ (Tor.com). NOVELETTE Sarah Pinsker, 'Our Lady of the Open Road'
(_Asimov's_ 6/15). SHORT Alyssa Wong, 'Hungry Daughters of Starving
Mothers' (_Nightmare_ 10/15). ANDRE NORTON (YA) Fran Wilde, _Updraft_. RAY
BRADBURY (film) _Mad Max: Fury Road_.
_Prometheus_ (libertarian): special award to the graphic novel
sequence _Alex + Ada_ by Jonathan Luna and Sarah Vaughn.
_Stoker_ (horror). NOVEL Paul Tremblay, _A Head Full of Ghosts_. DEBUT
Nicole Cushing, _Mr. Suicide_. YA John Dixon, _Devil's Pocket_. GRAPHIC
NOVEL Sam Weller, Mort Castle, Chris Ryall & Carlos Guzman (ed.), _Shadow
Show: Stories in Celebration of Ray Bradbury_. LONG FICTION Mercedes M.
Yardley, _Little Dead Red_. SHORT John Palisano, 'Happy Joe's Rest Stop'
(_18 Wheels of Horror_). SCREENPLAY David Robert Mitchell, _It Follows_.
ANTHOLOGY Michael Bailey (ed.), _The Library of the Dead_. COLLECTION Lucy
A. Snyder, _While the Black Stars Burn_. NON-FICTION Stephen Jones, _The
Art of Horror_. POETRY COLLECTION Alessandro Manzetti, _Eden Underground_.

HUGO AFTERMATH II. Tom Mays's withdrawn 'The Commuter' was replaced as a
Short Story finalist by Naomi Kritzer's 'Cat Pictures Please'
(_Clarkesworld_, 1/15). In Fanzine, _Black Gate_ withdrew as in 2015, and
was replaced by _Lady Business_. The official shortlist has been amended:
midamericon2.org/home/hugo-awards-and-wsfs/2016-hugo-finalists/.
Chuck Tingle, whose Short Story listing for 'Space Raptor Butt
Invasion' was a blatant Rabid Puppies attempt to embarrass the Hugos by
bloc-voting for gay erotica, rose to the occasion with a new epic titled
_Slammed in the Butt by My Hugo Award Nomination_ and won fannish hearts
(if perhaps not votes) by extensive mockery of the Rabids and their greasy
eminence Theodore 'Vox Day' Beale. This included registering
www.therabidpuppies.com as a puppy-taunting platform.

AS OTHERS RESEARCH US. 'Authors like Laurel K Hamilton, Charlaine Harris
and of course E L James have made sexy vampire tales mainstream ...'
(Damien Walter, damiengwalter.com, 18 May) E.L. James? Did we all miss a
vampire epic called _Fifty Shades of Blood_?

R.I.P. _Adolf Born_ (1930-2016), Czech painter and cartoonist who also
created popular fantasy animations for children, died on 22 May aged 85.
[PDF]
_Darwyn Cooke_ (1962-2016), Canadian comics artist and writer who
worked on Warner's 1990s _Batman_ and _Superman_ animations, plus DC's 2001
_Catwoman_ reboot and award-winning miniseries _The New Frontier_, died on
14 May. [PDF]
_Katherine Dunn_ (1945-2016), US author and journalist best known for
her bestselling horror/paranormal novel _Geek Love_ (1989), died on 11 May;
she was 70.
_Nicholas Fisk_ (David Higginbottom, 1923-2016), UK author of much
challenging and often unnerving sf for children, including _Space Hostages_
(1967), _Trillions_ (1971), _Grinny_ (1973), _Antigrav_ (1978) and the
uncompromisingly grim _A Rag, a Bone and a Hank of Hair_ (1980), died on 10
May; he was 94. [GW]
_Joe Fleishaker_ (1954-2016), outsized US character actor whose genre
films include _Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV_ (2000) plus others in
this franchise, _Tales from the Crapper_ (2004) and _Poultrygeist_ (2006),
died on 23 May aged 62.
_Makiko Futaki_ (1958-2016), Japanese animator who worked on _Akira_
(1988) and many Studio Ghibli films including _My Neighbor Totoro_ (1988),
_Princess Mononoke_ (1997), _Spirited Away_ (2001) and _Howl's Moving
Castle_ (2004), died on 13 May; she was 57.
_Roberta L. Gellis_ (1927-2016), US author of historical romances and
fantasies (including the 'Sceptr'd Isle' series with Mercedes Lackey) and
of sf as by Max Daniels in the 1970s and under her own name with _Overstars
Mail: Imperial Challenge_ (2004), died on 6 May; she was 88. [GVG]
_Gene Gutowski_ (1925-2016), Polish film producer whose credits
include Roman Polanski's _Repulsion_ (1965) and _The Fearless Vampire
Killers_ (1967), died on 10 May; he was 90. [MMW]
_Bill Herz_ (1916-2016), last surviving participant in Orson Welles's
notorious 1938 _War of the Worlds_ broadcast -- in which Herz played two
ham radio operators -- died on 10 May at the age of 99. [PDF]
_H.B. Hickey_ (Herbert B. Livingston, 1916-2016), author of some 80
stories including much sf from 1946 to 1970 (when 'Gone are the Lupo'
appeared in the Delany/Hacker anthology _Quark/1_), died on 8 March; he was
99. [WC]
_Mike Jencevice_ (1955-2016), US fan whose fanzine was _Trilevel_ and
who ran the Windycon dealers' room for over 30 years, died on 16 May. [SHS]
_Buck Kartalian_ (1922-2016), US character actor whose genre credits
include _Planet of the Apes_ (1968), _Conquest of the Planet of the Apes_
(1972) and _My Favorite Martian_ (1999), died on 24 May aged 93. [PDF]
_Burt Kwouk_ (1930-2016), UK actor seen in _The Avengers_ (1961-1965
tv), _Curse of the Fly_ (1965), _Doctor Who_: 'Four to Doomsday' (1982), _I
Bought a Vampire Motorcycle_ (1990) and various James Bond, Fu Manchu and
(most famously) Pink Panther films, died on 24 May aged 85.
_Tomohiro Matsu_ (1972-2016), Japanese author of 'light novels' made
into anime series, and scriptwriter for the fantasy anime _Queen's Blade:
The Exiled Virgin_, died on 2 May aged 42. [PDF]
_Angela Paton_ (1930-2016), US actress whose best-known genre role was
in _Groundhog Day_ (1993), died on 26 May aged 86. [PDF]
_Stewart Perkins_, UK comics and especially _2000 AD_ fan active since
the 1990s, whose _Judge Dredd_ fanzine was _Class of '79_, died on 21 May.
[GW]
_Paul Pinn_ (1955-2016), UK writer of horror and other genres whose
first novel was _The Pariah_ (2000), died from cancer on 4 February at the
age of 60. [GC]
_Stephen Prestwood_, UK small-press comics artist who co-founded
Evolutionary Comics in the early 1990s and drew for many other publishers,
died in late May. [GW]
_Michael Roberds_ (1964-2016), US actor who played Uncle Fester in
_The New Addams Family_ (1998-1999), with further credits including _Elf_
(2003), _Hot Tub Time Machine_ (2010), _Bong of the Dead_ (2011) and
_Finding Mrs. Claus_ (2012), died on 15 May aged 52. [PDF]
_Ian Sander_ (1947-2016), US tv producer best known for _Ghost
Whisperer_ (2005-2010), died on 3 May aged 68. Other genre productions
include _Brimstone_ (1998-1999) and _Frankenstein_ (2004). [PDF]
_William Schallert_ (1922-2016), US actor seen in _Star Trek_: 'The
Trouble with Tribbles' (1967), _The Wild Wild West_ (1967-1969), _Colossus:
The Forbin Project_ (1970), _Innerspace_ (1987) and _Bag of Bones_ (2011),
died on 8 May aged 93.
_Isao Tomita_ (1932-2016), Japanese composer and performer of
electronic music, often with sf themes as in his 1979 album _Bermuda
Triangle_, died on 5 May aged 84. [JonC]
_George Wildman_ (1927-2016), US cartoonist who for many years drew
_Popeye_ and was a senior editor at Charlton Comics 1971-1985, died on 22
May; he was 88. [PDF]
_Alan Young_ (1919-2016), UK-born actor whose genre credits include
George Pal's _The Time Machine_ (1960), _Mr Ed_ (1961-1966), _Battle of the
Planets_ (1978-1980), _The Cat from Outer Space_ (1978), _The Incredible
Hulk_ (1982-1983) and _DuckTales_ (1987-1990), died on 19 May; he was 96.
[F770]

AS OTHERS SEE US II. 'Mainstream writers duck into our field to achieve or
perpetrate a novel and then slip rapidly out again, protesting that they
were somewhere else all the time or at worst only slumming. When I
complimented Robert Graves on his masterly _Watch the North Wind Rise_
(_Seven Days in New Crete_ in England), he hastily replied, "Oh, but that's
not science fiction."' (Fritz Leiber, _F&SF_, May 1962) [VS]

COURT CIRCULAR. Marvel's and DC's joint ownership of a trademark on the
word 'superhero' was nearly tested in court after they tried to squelch UK
author Graham Jules over a self-help book titled _From Business Zero to
Superhero_. The big companies backed down shortly before the scheduled
hearing at the Intellectual Property Office in London. (_Guardian_, 24 May)
J.J. Abrams said in mid-May that the Paramount/CBS lawsuit against
Axanar Productions for _Star Trek_ IP infringement was 'going away'; a
settlement is implied, but Axanar filed a counterclaim against the studios
on 25 May. (www.trektoday.com, 25 May)

CLOSING DOWN. _Black Clock_ is ceasing publication with the current issue
21; this and back numbers, both print and PDF, will no longer be on sale
after 15 June. (Blackclock.org) [MI]
Gary Fry announced the immediate closure of his horror-oriented Gray
Friar Press on 23 May.

OUTRAGED LETTERS. _Charles Platt_ on the 1976 _Checkpoint_ pie report
(_A346_): 'At no time did I ever pay for any pie or pies thrown at Mr. Ted
White. Other people were happy to contribute; in fact one gentleman
insisted on paying for his very own pie. I was agenting for the pie thrower
at the time (a sixties radical friend) but took no commission. I apologized
to Ted long ago and cannot even remember why there was such interest in
pieing him back then. / I did however pay for the pie that was thrown at
William Shatner at a _Star Trek_ convention a year or so later. To my
embarrassment, Shatner heroically stepped in to prevent the pie thrower
from being torn apart by the mob.'

BLOG'S THE STUFF. John DeNardo announced on 5 May that the SF Signal blog
is to close down; an archive will no doubt be preserved. Charlie Jane
Anders announced her departure from io9 on 29 April: 'I need to spend some
serious quality time working on my next novel, without any distractions.'
This blog's new editor is Rob Bricken.

RANDOM FANDOM. _Joyce Katz_ suffered a stroke on 3 May but seems to be
recovering well. [AK]
_Mic Rogers_, long a familiar face at UK conventions, has moved into a
care home for reasons that include failing eyesight: please send no more
fanzines to her St Albans address.
_Marcus Rowland_'s _Forgotten Futures_ role-playing game no longer
accepts shareware registration: see ffutures-news.insanejournal.com.

THE DEAD PAST. _500 Years Ago:_ Thomas More's _Utopia_ had its first
edition (in Latin) in 1516.
_200 Years Ago:_ Lord Byron's suggestion of a story-writing contest
during three rainy June days at the Villa Diodati in Switzerland led to
John Polidori's _The Vampyre_ and Mary Shelley's _Frankenstein_. They were
spared the knowledge of having launched a horror tradition that would later
include sparkly vampires and _Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein_.
_50 Years Ago:_ 'PETER GEORGE, creator of Doctor Strangelove, who was
awarded a Hugo at the 1965 London World SF Convention for his novel _Red
Alert_, was found dead with head injuries at his home on 26th May. A
shotgun lay between his knees.' (_Skyrack_ 90, June 1966; the film, not the
book, won a Hugo.)

FANFUNDERY. _DUFF:_ Clare McDonald-Sims of Australia, the only candidate,
unsurprisingly won the northbound race to MidAmeriCon II.

THOG'S MASTERCLASS. _Walk Before You Run Dept._ 'The torment in his side
slowed him to a dizzy, infirm walk. He ran face-first into a tree ...'
(Patricia Anthony, 'Two-bag Goddess' in _Eating Memories_, 1997) [BA]
_Dept of Anticipating Chuck Tingle._ 'The gun, with its specially
made, tiny butt, felt comforting to his hand ...' (H.K. Bulmer, _Encounters
in Space_, 1952) [BA]
_The Critical Heritage._ '_The Handmaid's Tale_ was a dystopia about
the oppression of women by a feminist Canadian novelist from outside of the
genre.' (Andrew M. Butler, _Foundation_ 123, 2016) [BW]


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### ENDNOTES ###

APPARITIONS.
[] 10 June 2016: Ian Whates talks to the Brum Group. 7:30pm for 8pm at the
Briar Rose Hotel, Bennett's Hill, Birmingham city centre. Pounds4 or
Pounds3 for members. Contact bhamsfgroup at yahoo co uk. Future
meetings/speakers: 8 July 2016 Dave Lally; 12 August 2016 Summer Social
meal; 12 September 2016 tba; 14 October 2016 Andy Lound; 4 November 2016
tba; 2 December 2016 Xmas Social.

PAYPAL TIP JAR THINGY. Support _Ansible_, cover website costs and keep the
editor happy! Or just buy his books.
http://ansible.uk/paypal.html
http://ae.ansible.uk/
http://ae.ansible.uk/ebooks.php
http://ansible.uk/books/index.html

EDITORIAL. Here in the mighty throbbing powerhouse of Ansible Editions,
your editor is gaping at the near-final proof copy of Rob Hansen's _THEN:
Science Fiction Fandom in the UK: 1930-1980_. It's a pretty massive trade
paperback -- currently 428pp of smallish print with hundreds of photos,
even without the index on which Rob is even now toiling.

WE ARE EVERYWHERE. Steve Sneyd points out that the leaked Panama Papers
tax-haven story is tinged with genre, since the now infamous law firm
Mossack Fonseca set up a secret email system: 'Wealthy clients could
correspond using invented names. Some in the files leap out at you: Harry
Potter, Winnie Pooh and Daniel Radcliffe. Obviously not the real one. / One
customer used the name Isaac Asimov, a nod to the master of
twentieth-century science fiction, whom he admired.' (_Guardian_, 9 April)

THOG'S SECOND HELPING. _Vivid Symbolism Dept._ '"Interestingly," Sparkes
told Matthews later, as they sat in the cafeteria, "not all porn addicts
get erections." / Ian Matthews raised an eyebrow as he rested his sausage
sandwich on the Formica table. "Do you mind, boss? I'm eating."' (Fiona
Barton, _The Widow_, 2016) [PB]


Ansible 347 Copyright (c) David Langford, 2016. Thanks to Brian Ameringen,
Banana Wings, Paul Barnett, John Boston, Jonathan Clements, William
Contento, Gary Couzens, Paul Di Filippo, File 770, Morbus Iff, Arnie Katz,
Private Eye, Steven H Silver, Vernon Speed, Gordon Van Gelder, Gary
Wilkinson, Martin Morse Wooster, and our Hero Distributors: Dave Corby
(Birmingham SF Group), SCIS/Prophecy, Alan Stewart (Australia).

1 June 2016

--
David Langford | http://ansible.uk/ | http://news.ansible.uk/

[David Langford]

On Wed, 01 Jun 2016 17:07:44 +0100, David Langford <ans...@cix.co.uk>
wrote:

>22 Jun [] BSFA OPEN MEETING, Artillery Arms, 102 Bunhill Row, London, EC1Y
>8ND. 5/6pm for 7pm. With Charles Stross. Free.

Venue change not communicated to Ansible: Keynes Library, Birkbeck
University, 43 Gordon Square, London, WC1H 0PD. 6pm for 7pm.

[T Guy]

Nice one, Ms LeGuin.

This is what I believe is known in some circles as a Double Whammy, in that it has the Thog classic physical impossibility or at least difficult or unusual occurrance combined with near-impenetrable narration.

Personally, I am with Evelyn Waugh in believing that 'The Master' means P. G. Wodehouse.

> AS OTHERS SEE US II. 'Mainstream writers duck into our field to achieve or
> perpetrate a novel and then slip rapidly out again, protesting that they
> were somewhere else all the time or at worst only slumming. When I
> complimented Robert Graves on his masterly _Watch the North Wind Rise_
> (_Seven Days in New Crete_ in England), he hastily replied, "Oh, but that's
> not science fiction."' (Fritz Leiber, _F&SF_, May 1962) [VS]

To be read in conjunction with...