Ansible 443 -- June 2024

[Ansible Newsletter]

ANSIBLE(R) 443
JUNE 2024

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 collected _Pensees_ of the Abbe Fausse-Maigre.

[NET NOTE. See https://news.ansible.uk/a443.html for the nice HTML version; https://news.ansible.uk/pdf/a443.pdf for a printable PDF. Mailing list subscribe/unsubscribe information appears below -- please don't send such requests to my own e-mail address. DRL]


### THE HIGHER COMMON SENSE ###

NEIL CLARKE loves these AI instructions on how to sell to his _Clarkesworld_: 'While prior composing experiences can be valuable, it's not in a general sense required to surrender to Clarkesworld Magazine. _[...]_ From writer's piece to expulsion, learn how to overcome common obstructions and stay impelled on your composing journey. / Writers commonly hold the rights to their work when submitting to Clarkesworld Magazine, in showing disdain toward the truth that specific terms may move depending on individual contracts or agreements.' (Facebook, 28 May)

JOHN LINWOOD GRANT has engaged with happy user-friendly Kindle Direct Publishing. 'ME: "Please unpublish this book because the publisher died. Here is the Funeral Home Notice, the pertinent contract, and all the book details." KDP: "Please have them contact us from their own email. Have a lovely day."' (Facebook, 10 May) Ouija boards are now sought.

RYAN REYNOLDS, co-star with Hugh Jackman of the superhero movie _Deadpool & Wolverine_, issued a brutally honest disclaimer: 'This film is as paper thin as a sequel to _Battlefield Earth_.' (IMDb, 21 May)

ADAM ROBERTS, in a backward-gazing review of Chris Foss's 1990 graphic work _Diary of a Spaceperson_, boggled at its rich mix of hardware (massive spaceships) and soft porn (the narrator's all too frequently bare bosom, partly because future muggers strip you of everything from the waist up): 'You can see the lubricious cynicism of the pairing: you know who likes science fiction? Teenage boys. You know what else teenage boys like? Boobies. Let's combine them! It'll be a smash! It's _Flasher Gordon_. It's _The Empire Strips Off_. It's _Book of the New Page-3-of-the-Sun_. It's _The Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Nudity_.' (Sibilant Fricative, 9 May)

JEFF VANDERMEER discovers another anomaly of Area X: 'I'm on the _Locus_ finalist list for best editor with Ann _[VanderMeer]_ ... despite not having edited anything in ages. Ann has, but not me. So, anyways ... just cross my name out.' (Facebook, 10 May). As usual the list is too long for _Ansible_: see locusmag.com/2024/05/2024-locus-awards-top-ten-finalists/.


### CONTREFORT ###

31 May - 2 Jun [] CYMERA: Scotland's Festival of SF, Fantasy & Horror Writing, Edinburgh. See www.cymerafestival.co.uk.

31 May - 2 Jun [] FUNCON ONE, Palace Hotel, Buxton.GBP65 reg; GBP80 with added 'warm fuzzy feeling'; GBP40 concessions. See funcon.lol.

8-9 Jun [] EM-CON (media), Motorpoint Arena, Nottingham. Weekend tickets GBP30 (11am entry) or GBP40 (10am) at www.em-con.co.uk.

9 Jun [] SEEK-LOCATE-CELEBRATE (_Blake's 7_; formerly Forever Avon), Steventon Village Hall, Steventon, Oxford, OX13 5RR. 10am-4pm. See www.facebook.com/TeamBlakeForeverAvon.

12 Jun [] TOLKIEN LECTURE by Neil Gaiman, Oxford Town Hall, Oxford. 6pm. See tolkienlecture.org.

19-23 Jun [] DARKNESS IN THE FIELDS (folk horror), online. GBP45 reg, GBP25 Sat/Sun only, plus fees. See tinyurl.com/ditfmidsummer2.

21 Jun [] SUMMER SOLSTICE AT JODRELL BANK (Alan Garner event), Jodrell Bank, Cheshire. GBP40 reg; students GBP32. See tinyurl.com/43b23xnd.

22-23 Jun [] _JUPITER'S GHOST_ (sf play by Tani Gill), The Cockpit, London. See www.thecockpit.org.uk/show/jupiters_ghost.

22 Jun [] BSFA/SF FOUNDATION AGM online event, 9:45am-4pm. GoH Nina Allan. See 31 May post at www.sf-foundation.org/fresh-about.

22 Jun [] STARS OF TIME (comics), LC, Steam Museum, Swindon. Adult ticket GBP17.50; other rates at www.starsoftime.co.uk/swindon.

6 Jul [] TOLKIEN SOCIETY SEMINAR on his 'Romantic Resonances', Leeds Hilton and online. Free. See www.tolkiensociety.org/events/.

7 Jul [] AINTREE-CON, Aintree Racecourse. 10am-4pm. Adult tickets GBP11; other rates at www.ljeventsentertainment.com.

19-21 Jul [] FANTASY FOREST (cosplay), Sudely Castle, Cheltenham. SOLD OUT except for a few Sunday-only tickets: see fantasyforest.co.uk.

26-29 Jul [] CONTINUUM (RPG), Cranfield University CMDC . GBP60 reg; day pass GBP25 for any day. See continuumconvention.co.uk.

3-4 Aug [] SURREY STEAMPUNK CONVIVIAL, Stoneleigh, Epsom. See bumpandthumper.wixsite.com/steampunkconvivials.

17-18 Aug [] FOR THE LOVE OF FANTASY, ExCel, London. Tickets GBP51.70; under-10s GBP22; under-5s free. See www.fortheloveoffantasy.com.

17 Aug [] SMALL PRESS DAY, various events throughout the UK and Ireland, and online. More awaited at smallpressday.co.uk.

14 Sep [] POPCORN (media), Magna, Sheffield. Tickets GBP12; under-17s GBP9.50; accompanied under-7s free. See popcorncon.com.

7-8 Dec [] WOMEN IN THE BLACK FANTASTIC (SF Foundation conference), online. Call for papers (by 2 August) at tinyurl.com/2s4m2bbf.

5 Apr 2025 [] BEDFORD WHO CHARITY CON (_Doctor Who_), King's House, Ampthill Road, Bedford, MK42 9AZ. 10am-5:30pm. Tickets GBP49.50; under-14s GBP20. See bedfordwhocharitycon.co.uk.

RUMBLINGS. _Glasgow 2024 Worldcon:_ the Hugo Voter Packet was released on 20 May. Membership rates rise to the final at-the-door level on 1 July. See glasgow2024.org.
     _Levitation_ (Eastercon 2024) has issued a Final Report including venue assessment and accounts -- suggesting this event would have had serious financial difficulties without the GBP38,000+ 'pass along' funding from previous Eastercons -- at eastercon2024.co.uk/report.
     _Middle-earth Festival_, September (formerly at Sarehole Mill, Birmingham; a new venue has long been promised): owing to lack of funds and sponsorship there will be no 2024 event.
     _Son of Chengdu?_ The Chinese local-government and business interests that apparently took control of the 2023 Chengdu Worldcon away from both Chinese and overseas fandom have announced a grandiose ten-year sf development plan that includes another Worldcon bid within five years. [F770]


### INFINITELY IMPROBABLE ###

AS OTHERS SEE US. _Which Story Was That?:_ 'The stereotypical sci-fi citizen is cold, sombre, aloof and efficient.' (_Guardian_, 19 May) [DA]

AWARDS. _Arthur C. Clarke Award_ shortlist: _Chain-Gang All-Stars_ by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, _The Ten Percent Thief_ by Lavanya Lakshminarayan, _In Ascension_ by Martin MacInnes, _The Mountain in the Sea_ by Ray Nayler, _Some Desperate Glory_ by Emily Tesh, _Corey Fah Does Social Mobility_ by Isabel Waidner. Winner to be announced on 24 July.
     _Robert A. Heinlein Memorial Award:_ William Shatner.
     _SFRA Award for Lifetime Contributions to SF Scholarship:_ Lisa Yaszek. [L]
     _SFWA Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award:_ Jennell Jaquays (posthumous).

BLURBISMO. _Dept of Contemporaries:_ 'The best writers of the early 1900s were the first to flood New York with tidal waves, destroy Illinois with alien invaders, paralyze Washington with meteors, and lay waste to the Midwest with nuclear fallout. Now collected for the first time ever in one apocalyptic volume are those early doomsday writers and their contemporaries, including Neil Gaiman, Orson Scott Card, Lucius Shepard, Robert Sheckley, Norman Spinrad ...' (Amazon description of Martin H. Greenberg's anthology _The End of the World_, 2010) [AW]

R.I.P. _Susan Backlinie_ (1946-2024), US actress in _Jaws_ (1975), _Day of the Animals_ (1977) and _The Great Muppet Caper_ (1981), died on 11 May aged 77. [AIP]
     _Georg Bobjork_ (1952-2024), Swedish fan and convention worker active from 1979, whose infrequent fanzine was _40th Century Cat_, died on 15 May aged 72. [J-HH]
     _Roger Bozzetto_ (1937-2024), noted French critic who published many studies of sf and fantasy from 1992 to 2014, died on 20 March aged 87. [P-SP]
     _John Michael Burns_, UK comics artist/colourist who worked on many Marvel UK titles including _X-Men_, died in February aged 76. [SH]
     _Caleb Carr_ (1955-2024), US author and screenwriter whose sf novel was _Killing Time_ (2000), died on 23 May aged 68. Film credits include _The Osiris Chronicles_ (1998) and two in the _Exorcist_ franchise. [SJ]
     _Dabney Coleman_ (1932-2024), US actor in _WarGames_ (1983), _Target Earth_ (1998), _Stuart Little_ (1999), _Meet the Applegates_ (1990) and _Devil's Food_ (1996), died on 16 May aged 92. [LP]
     _Roger Corman_ (1926-2024), US film-maker notorious for many low-budget exploitation movies from 1954 onward, including _Attack of the Crab Monsters_ (1957), _The Little Shop of Horrors_ (1960) and _X: The Man with the X-ray Eyes_ (1963) -- also some enjoyable Poe-based films starring Vincent Price -- died on 9 May aged 98. His last work as director was _Frankenstein Unbound_ (1990) from the Aldiss novel; as producer, _Death Race 2050_ (2017). He was a very popular guest at the 1996 LA Worldcon.
     _Mark Damon_ (1933-2024), US actor in Roger Corman's _The Fall of the House of Usher_ (1960) and others, producer of _Flight of the Navigator_ (1986) and executive producer of further genre films, died on 12 May aged 91. [SJ]
     _Jeannie Epper_ (1941-2024), US stunt performer in _Close Encounters of the Third Kind_ (1977), _Wild Wild West_ (1999), _Minority Report_ (2002), _Freaky Friday_ (2003), _The Book of Eli_ (2020) and many more, died on 5 May aged 83. [AIP]
     _H. Bruce Franklin_, award-winning US academic critic and anthologist whose books include _Robert A. Heinlein: America as Science Fiction_ (1980) and _War Stars: The Superweapon and the American Imagination_ (1988; 2008), died on 19 May aged 90. [JC]
     _Ian Gelder_ (1949-2024), UK actor in _Torchwood_ (2009), _Game of Thrones_ (2011-2016) and other genre tv series including _Doctor Who_, died on 6 May aged 74. [SF2C]
     _Jon Haward_ (1965-2024), UK comics artist who drew Dan Dare, Judge Dredd and Spider-Man, and adapted classics including _Frankenstein_, _Macbeth_ and _The Tempest_, was reported in early May as having died aged 58. [SH]
     _Darryl Hickman_ (1931-2024), US actor in _The Tingler_ (1959), _GoBots: Battle of the Rock Lords_ (1986) and genre tv series, died on 22 May aged 92. SJ
     _Bernard Hill_ (1944-2024), award-winning UK actor in _The Wind in the Willows_ (1996), parts 2 and 3 of _The Lord of the Rings_ (2002, 2003), _The Scorpion King_ (2002), _Outpost 11_ (2013) and others, died on 5 May aged 79. (BBC)
     _Jan A.P. Kaczmarek_ (1953-2024), noted Polish composer whose film scores include _Pale Blood_ (1990), _Doppelganger_ (1993) and _Lost Souls_ (2000), died on 21 May aged 71. [AIP]
     _Edgar Lansbury_ (1930-2024), UK producer of _Godspell_ (1973) and _The Clairvoyant_ (1982), died on 2 May aged 94. [SJ]
     _James Laurenson_ (1940-2024), New Zealand-born actor in _The Turn of the Screw_ (1974), _The Monster Club_ (1981), _The Man Who Fell to Earth_ (1987) and others, died on 18 April aged 84. [SJ]
     _R.F. Lucchetti_ (1930-2024), hugely prolific Brazilian writer active since age 12 in newspapers, pulp magazines, radio,films, tv and over 1,500 books including Brazil's first space opera series, died on 5 March aged 94. [L]
     _Tony McFarr_, US stuntman in _Dawn of the Planet of the Apes_ (2014), _The Hunger Games: Mockingjay 2_ (2015), _Jurassic World_ (2015), _Guardians of the Galaxy 2_ (2017) and others, died on 14 May aged 47. [LP]
     _Elizabeth MacRae_ (1936-2024), US actress in _The Incredible Mr. Limpet_ (1964) and _The House of the Dead_ (1978), died on 27 May aged 88. [SJ]
     _Oleg Moroz_ (1938-2024), Russian science writer whose sf novel is _Problema SETI_ (_The Problem of SETI_, 1988), died on 20 May. [AM]
     _Akira Nakao_ (1942-2024), Japanese actor in _The Vampire Doll_ (1970) and several Godzilla films beginning with _Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II_ (1993), died on 16 May aged 81.
     _Don Perlin_ (1929-2024), US comics writer/artist best known for Marvel's _The Defenders_, _Ghost Rider_, _Moon Knight_ (as co-creator) and _Werewolf by Night_, died on 14 May aged 94. [SE]
     _Vitaly Pishchenko_ (1952-2024), Russian author of ten sf novels who chaired the Russian writers' union council for sf/adventure fiction since 2003, died on 10 May. [AM]
     _David Redd_ (1946-2024), UK author, fan and Milford UK attendee who began to publish short sf in _New Worlds_ in 1966 -- most of his fiction is in _Collected Stories_ (2018) -- died on 11 May aged 78. [GP] His fanzines included _Dr Faustenstein_ 1979-1980. David was a long-time _Ansible_ contributor and an old friend.
     _Albert S. Ruddy_ (1930-2024), US producer and screenwriter whose credits include _Megaforce_ (1982) and _A Gunman's Curse_ (2019), died on 25 May aged 94.
     _Allan Servoss_, award-winning US artist who created covers and interiors for Arkham House and other weird fiction publishers, died on 16 May. [SJ]
     _Richard M. Sherman_ (1928-2024), Oscar-winning composer who with his brother Robert (1925-2012) created music and songs for many Disney films including _The Sword in the Stone_ (1963), _Mary Poppins_ (1964), _The Jungle Book_ (1967, 2016) and _Chitty Chitty Bang Bang_ (1968), died on 25 May aged 95. [F770]
     _Robert Smets_ (1940-2024), Belgian fan and convention-goer active since 1970 who edited some 80 issues of the SFAN sf club's _SF-Magazine_ and in later life published a number of genre stories, died on 14 March aged 83. [FR]
     _Morgan Spurlock_ (1970-2024), US documentary maker whose credits include _Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fan's Hope_ (2011), _The Death of Superman Lives: What Happened?_ (2015) and the _Star Wars_ fan study _In a Galaxy_ (2015-2016), died on 23 May aged 53. [LP]
     _Hideyuki Umezu_ (1955-2024), Japanese voice actor in _Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ_ (1986), _Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood_ (2009) and other anime, died on 17 May aged 68.
     _Gudrun Ure_ (1926-2024), Scots actress who starred in _Super Gran_ (1985-1987) and was in _The 10th Kingdom_ (2000) and other genre series, died on 14 May aged 98. [SJ]
     _Wim van de Bospoort_ (1955-2024), Dutch fan, collector and artist who worked on many conventions including the 1990 and 1995 Worldcons, died on 6 May aged 68. [KvT]
     _Johnny Wactor_ (1986-2024), US actor in _Siberia_ (2013), _Dead Talk Tales I_ (2024) and genre tv series, died on 25 May aged 37. [LP]

THE WEAKEST LINK. _Bradley Walsh:_ 'In which play by Oscar Wilde does the character Jack Worthing explain that he was found in a handbag?' _Contestant:_ '_The Rocky Horror Show_.' (ITV, _Tipping Point_) [PE]

MARCH OF THE ROBOTS. Early last year Meta (Facebook, Meta AI etc) considered buying Simon & Schuster so they could train their Large Language Model on all that company's books. Authors, it was suggested in a moment of unusual generosity, might get $10 per book for all such rights; but the idea of negotiating licences was eventually dismissed as too tiresome and time-wasting. (_New York Times_, 6 May) As the CEO of S&S summed it up: 'Instead, I guess they just decided to steal everything.'

RANDOM FANDOM. _A Pilgrimage to Linlithgow_ is suggested by Dave Lally to 2024 Worldcon-goers: a D.C. Fontana _Star Trek_ novel named the town as Scotty's birthplace (in 2222) and the Museum has a blue plaque.

HAD THEY BUT KNOWN. Romance Writers of America filed for US Chapter 11 bankruptcy on 29 May. Owing to Covid and internal conflicts whose root causes have been summarized as institutional bigotry and racism, the membership has fallen from 10,000 in 2019 to around 2,000, while RWA owes some $3 million to its annual conference hotels, plus nearly $75,000 to other creditors and a $1m contract termination demand from the Philadelphia hotel booked for 2025. (_U.S. News_, 29 May) [F770]

OUTRAGED LETTERS. _Graham Charnock_ on the New York gala themed for J.G. Ballard's 'The Garden of Time' (see _A442_): 'BBC's breakfast programme just reported on the Met Gala as having a "gardening" theme. The sound of J.G. Ballard turning in his flower bed was audible.' (7 May)

THE DEAD PAST. _20 Years Ago_, a report on the sixth and last Mexicon: 'This lightweight event (held in the posh international resort of Stevenage) celebrated the tenth anniversary of 1984's "Tynecon II: the Mexicon" to such enjoyable effect that the happy throng voted _nem con_ never to do this terrible thing again. [...] An item on censorship saw fearless Roz Kaveney being brutally and repeatedly censored by John Harvey's sound system: "The thing about snuff movies is that WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" [...] Fleeing hordes of audience members refused to speak of the panel on e-mail and fanzines. "It was @hell in there," seemed to be the consensus. "Wibble!" explained Charles Stross, and fell over.' (_Ansible_ 83, June 1994)
     _60 Years Ago_, UK publishers irritated sf fans in different ways: 'The most annoying thing about Four Square, besides their use of that horrible term, "Sci-Fi", is their practice of taking an anthology or collection and publishing it in two parts under two separate titles. So far they have done this with _Worlds of Tomorrow_ edited by August Derleth (the other part being called _New Worlds for Old_) and _All the Traps of Earth_ by Clifford Simak (the other half being called _The Night of the Puudly_).' (Rog Peyton in Peter Weston's _Zenith_ 5, June 1964)
     _Also 60 Years Ago:_ 'John Wyndham's _Web_, a new novel, due out autumn'. (_Skyrack_ 68, June 1964) But it didn't appear until 1979, ten years after John Wyndham had died.

FANFUNDERY. _Corflu Fifty:_ the fund for assisted travel to Corflu will bring Nic and Jennifer Farey to the April 2025 event in Newbury, UK.
     _TAFF Books._ Coming next in ebook and paperback: Rob Hansen's _British SF Conventions Volume 2: 1952-1957_, part of a series whose first, third and fifth volumes -- respectively covering 1937-1951, the 1957 London Worldcon, and its 1965 successor -- have already been published.

EDITORIAL. In May, to stupendous yawns of excitement from fandom worldwide, the _SF Encyclopedia_ passed the milestones of 20,000 entries and seven million words. We've come a long way since the 1979 and 1993 book editions, as shown by bar charts at sf-encyclopedia.com/facts.php.
     Sandra Bond promises me, in a context not yet to be revealed: 'You shall go down in the credits as Zero-G Inertia Consultant, alongside the head brewer at my former job who is Zero-G Beer Consultant.'

THOG'S MASTERCLASS. _High Style._ 'The queasiness of his discomposure dropped the floor out of the room.' '... treated me with an impatient familiarity, as if we were both sticky and were leaving streaks on one another.' 'He looked dazzled into boyishness by the half-sky of the building's skull.' 'We separated and spent the fading day bobbing shyly around one another like clots in a lava lamp.' (all Kaliane Bradley, _The Ministry of Time_, 2024) [MA]
     _Pond Life._ 'As she looked around, her pupils seemed to grow even wider, black pools surrounded by long reeds of hair.' (Alexandra Benedict, _Murder on the Christmas Express_, 2022) [BA]
     _What I Tell You Four Times Is True._ 'A half-finished keep occupied the spot where the outpost once stood. The builders never completed the keep, and from the looks of things they had abandoned the place some time ago. The unfinished keep was little more than a ruin, empty of lords or knights, servants or tenants. The place felt unfinished.' (Bill Slavicsek, _The Mark of Nerath_, 2010)
     _Cuboid Woman._ 'Marcy did not push or shove her way -- she was a big woman, tall and muscular in the way a refrigerator is tall and muscular.' (Chuck Wendig, _Wanderers_, 2019) [AK]


### GEEKS' CORNER ###

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### ENDNOTES ###

PAYPAL TIP JAR THINGY. Donate to support _Ansible_, cover website costs and keep the editor happy! Or just buy his books.
https://ansible.uk/paypal.html
https://ae.ansible.uk/
https://ansible.uk/books/index.html

GROUP THEORY.
     15 June 2024, 'It's Strange Up North' (with various Northern SFF authors), Waterstones in Leeds, 5:30-8:30pm.
     20 June 2024, evening: London Zoom meeting, third Thursday of each month. 'Please share this with people who you know typically come to the Bishop's Finger, but aren't on Facebook.'
https://bohemiancoast.medium.com/first-thursday-london-sf-fan-virtual-drinks-5232021e961f

R.I.P. II -- LATE AND LAST-MINUTE REPORTS. _Cathy Buburuz_, Canadian fanzine illustrator, horror zine publisher (_Champagne Horror_, _Champagne Shivers_), anthologist, short story author and poet, died on 15 December 2021. [LP]

WHAT GOES AROUND, COMES AROUND. In April 2023, _Ansible_ quoted the _Private Eye_ 'Dumb Britain' department. _Host:_ 'In the Tales of Beatrix Potter, what sort of animal is Pigling Bland?' _Contestant:_ 'A rabbit.' (ITV, _Tipping Point_). In the latest _Eye_ (24 May), the same host of the same quiz show gets the same answer to a very slightly different question: 'In the Beatrix Potter stories, what type of animal is Pigling Bland?' Not sure whether _Tipping Point_ or an _Eye_ contributor is recycling material....

RANDOM FANDOM II. _Rob Hansen_ points out that most issues of Mike Moorcock's early fanzines _Burroughsania_ and _Jazz Fan_ (aka _Fantasy and Jazz Fen/Fan_ and _The Rambler_) are now online at Fanac.org, along with his article 'I Married a Prozine':
https://fanac.org/fanzines/Burroughsania/
https://fanac.org/fanzines/Jazz_Fan/
https://fanac.org/fanzines/Archive/Archive14.pdf#page=4

SOME LINKS from the _Ansible_ home page.
     Eastercon 2024 Final Report
https://eastercon2024.co.uk/report
     Lego 'Brick Fest' in Wonka Experience tradition
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/article/2024/may/30/genuinely-a-con-lego-enthusiasts-bemoan-half-empty-room-at-birmingham-nec-event
     _Locus_ Awards finalists
https://locusmag.com/2024/05/2024-locus-awards-top-ten-finalists/
     Son of Chengdu Rising from the Grave?
https://file770.com/the-pidu-district-of-chengdu-announces-a-10-year-science-fiction-plan/

THOG'S GOLDEN OLDIES from _Ansible_ 203, June 2004. _New Maths Dept._ 'I've just gotten a reply. A series of pulses: one, two, three, five, seven, nine. Prime numbers. I respond in kind with the next set.' (Syne Mitchell, Murphy's Gambit, 2000)
     _Movie Science Dept._ 'Of course, X-rays are impermeable to lead.' (_Teen Agent_, 1991)
     _Dept of Continuity._ Prologue: 'The last mountains had been ground to dust by the wind and the rain, and the world was too weary to bring forth more.' Chapter 10: 'Time had not conquered everything; Earth still possessed mountains of which she could be proud.' (Arthur C. Clarke, _The City and the Stars_, 1956)
     _Unmoved Mover Dept._ 'Without moving, she raised a hand to feel her bloody head.' (Laurie J. Marks, _Fire Logic_, 2002)
     _Neat Tricks._ 'Taylor struggled to his console, tried to lift the red handset to Damage Control back aft, and realized his right collarbone was smashed. He grabbed for the phone with his left.' (Joe Buff, _Thunder in the Deep_, 2001)
     _Must Have Been Something I Ate._ 'A deep joy bubbled inside her, sounding like a sparkling stream full of spring rain.' (Leah R. Cutter, _Paper Mage_, 2003)


_Ansible_(R) 443 (C) David Langford, 2024. Thanks to Dev Agarwal, Brian Ameringen, Margaret Austin, John Clute, Scott Edelman, _File 770_, Steve Holland, John-Henri Holmberg, Steve Jones, Amanda 'Dr Bob' Kear, _Locus_, Andrey Meshavkin, _Private Eye_, Phil Stephensen-Payne, Lawrence Person, Greg Pickersgill, Andrew I. Porter, Frank Roger, _SF2 Concatenation_, Kees van Toorn, Andrew Wells, and our Hero Distributors: Durdles Books (Brum Group), SCIS/Prophecy and Alan Stewart (Australia).

31 May 2024