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Sci Fi

Lesbian Colony on Mars?

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Andrew Sullivan makes the case for women on Mars. I can already see the lesbian plot bunnies proliferating: Last year, Kate Greene and five teammates simulated living conditions on Mars for a NASA-funded project (the experiment actually took place on a volcano in Hawaii). What she noticed while collecting and managing data: Week in and week out, the three female crew members expended less than half the calories of the three male crew members. Less than half! We were all exercising roughly the same amount–at least 45 minutes a day for five consecutive days a week–but our metabolic furnaces were … Read more

Mirror, Mirror

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Our topic today comes from QSFer Rebecca Cohen: “I do like parallel dimensions and alternative universes.” Oooh, me too. I still remember that Star Trek episode, Mirror Mirror, where everyone had an evil version of themselves in an alternate universe. Or the Phantom Zone from the Superman comics. Or the paths of the Silfen in Peter Hamilton’s Commonwealth series. So how about you? What are some of your favorite “alternate Earth / parallel dimension” stories? And how could we use them to explore LGBT life?

Announcement: Untouchable, by LV Lloyd

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QSFer LV Lloyd has a new sci fi book out: Untouchable is a story about two men, Alan Stewart, First Lieutenant on the space ship Qatar and Captain Robin Lang of the Huan Police Force. Stewart and Lang have been best friends since their days in the Space Academy, despite the fact that Stewart is gay and Lang has a wife and son, Max. However Max is growing up and their friendship is threatened when Lang believes Stewart has designs on his son. When Max, now an adult and a recent recruit to the Qatar, is assaulted in a gay … Read more

Announcement: Down Under, by Tam Ames

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QSFer Tam Ames has a new sci fi novel out: The year 2089 finds Australia split between east and west, with a wall to ensure the east stays safe. College student Aiden Taylor is traveling from Perth to Sydney to see Men at Work, who have been revived after cryogenic freezing. Regrettably, only days into his trip, his moped is stolen—and then he meets a naked man from the east. The man turns out to be Matthew King, who offers Aiden a ride—no strings attached—all the way to Sydney. When another attack occurs the following night, Aiden discovers Matthew’s impossible … Read more

Where Do I Submit My Non-Romance Story?

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Today’s topic comes from QSFer Hank T. Cannon: “who are the best publishers to submit gay sci-fi to? My work is not particularly romantic, but the protagonists are gay.” Hmmmm, I think we’re at the beginning of a potential expansion of LGBT stories in speculative fiction (hence this blog) that do not rely on romance as the principle plot driver. I’ve said for a while that I want to see more LGBT stories in sci fi and fantasy, especially, that are driven by the genre and not the romance. Not that there can’t be some romance or relationship included. I’d … Read more

Ripped From the Headlines

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Today’s topic is from QSFer Angel Martinez, just home from GRL: “Favorite new scientific/ medical advances you want to use in a story.” There are so many to choose from – 3-D printers, Lab-grown penises, the oPhone app to send smells across the internet.. how do you choose just one? So what recent scientific or medical stories caught your eye? And how would you build a story around one of them?

Guest Post: Romance Among the Stars, by Jamie Lynn Miller

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Many thanks to Scott for having me here today to talk about my new novella, An Endless Sea of Stars. Keep reading to see how you can win an Amazon gift card! I’ve been a sci-fi fan since 1977, the year that a little film called Star Wars hit the movie screens. I was only six years old back then. While my friends wanted to go see Bambi I was begging my dad to take me to Star Wars. My mother thought I was nuts and refused to go, saying my dad was just wasting his money because I wouldn’t … Read more

Announcement: Sarge, by Bey Deckard

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QSFer Bey Deckard has a new book out: Sometimes it’s just about being in the right place at the right time… with the right person. Sarge is the short story of a burgeoning D/s relationship between two space marines stationed on an alien planet where an endless war drags on. Sergeant Wilkes is a hard man with a long, celebrated military career. Brawny, tattooed, and utterly submissive, Murphy is just an interesting diversion… until Sarge realises he has found something truly rare. Excerpt You’re a good boy, Murph,” he says softly to me. “You get me home, get me patched … Read more

World Building Tricks and Tools

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Today’s topic comes from QSFer Jim Comer Conlangs: “World building.” We’ve talked about this before, but it’s one of my favorites – especially for sci fi or fantasy. Today I wanna break it down a little. As a whole, this generally means creating a convincing, immersive experience – when it’s done well, you feel like you are inside the author’s world, and no matter how strange or futuristic (or fantastic), it works. Some of my favorite sci fi and fantasy worlds for their immersive qualities are (in no particular order) Majipoor, Pern, Middle Earth, Dune, The Land, and Shannara (ok, … Read more

Weird Westerns

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Today’s topic comes from QSFer Cynthia Ward: “LGBT Weird Westerns? I would think Weird Western fantasies of any subgenre would cover a lot of WW territory? (supernatural horror, dark fantasy, urban fantasy, magic realism, occult, high fantasy, steampunk fantasy, fantastic bizarro, fantastique, fairytale, fantasy surrealism, etc).” OK, I’m game. One of my favorite underrated sci fi movies of the last ten years was Cowboys and Aliens. I was hooked from the moment I heard the titles, and I may have been the only one, but I thought the movie was awesome. Then, of course, there’s Firefly, the ultimate Western in space, … Read more