ladykatza

What kind of fantasy works for you from the genre? If it helps, name some examples. - Treyvah

I had some difficulty parsing this particular request, but upon watching Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, I had a bit of an epiphany. I am fascinated by science fiction/fantasy that deals with human spirit. So much of our science fiction talks about humans creating technology to be able to do bigger and better things. But as we artificially enhance the human form, what happens to that which makes us living and sentient?

“All stories are stories of enlightenment”. It was something that my friend dreama said. In this way, I’ve found that I admire greatly the works of C.S. Friedman. I think that she is a contemporary of William Gibson, in that their flavor of science is very much influenced by current trends of technology. Where Friedman branches off, and where she is most skilled, is she takes humans and puts them in a completely alien setting. Sometimes they don’t even remember, except in ancient lore, that they were once from a place called Earth. Every series she writes is a landscape of emotion and detail, landscapes alien yet eerily familiar. She turns left when you expect a right. She tears away the masks and shows just how terrifying human emotion can be, even with all the technology we use to shield us from it.

I am not hugely into cyberpunk in novel form, but works such as the Ghost in the Shell series, and other similar anime are enjoyable.

Another thing I look for in writing is characters. Knowing what character is speaking just by what and how they say things is the mark of good characterization. Having that solid foundation of personality, the character is then the one driving the story and the situation. To paraphrase Heinlein “I don’t write the book, I write the character, throw them in a situation and let them get themselves out of it”.

Hmm, does this explain what I enjoy? To a point, I guess. I like scifi that gets you involved the the character and the alien landscape upon which they are painted. Throw in a good bit of sexiness, and I’m set.

This says a lot about me, but when I want trash romance, I read Laurel K Hamilton’s books.