Revisiting The Past.

I recently decided I wanted to revisit some of the series of novels I loved when I was younger. I looked at my Julian May (The Saga of the Exiles) series, my E.E. 'Doc' Smith (Lensmen) series, Stephen Donaldson (The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant) series, my Stephen Lawhead (Pendragon Cycle) series, my Christopher Stasheff (Warlock) series, my Isaac Asimov (Foundation) series, and more. I also realised it has been years since I'd even touched a fantasy novel. Far too long.

Fantasy books are renown for being ridiculously thick. And I must admit that's one of the things that has deterred me from reading the fantasy series by George R.R. Martin or Robert Jordan. I want to read the newer Thomas Covenant books, but first I have to go back and re-read the original six. I also want to read the newer Hitchhiker's Guide book, but first I need to go back and read the first five. In the end, I opted for alternating between Hitchhiker's Guide by Douglas Adams, and The Belgariad series, by David Eddings.

Firstly, neither series of books are too thick. All eleven books are about the size of two novels by George R.R. Martin. Secondly, I have fond memories of reading them, although my memory of the Belgariad is limited to the first few chapters. And thirdly, I love the covers on the Belgariad series I have.

I'm tearing through them quite rapidly. The Belgariad is nowhere near as heavy as I recall - it's a gentle, easy read. Yes, the world-building is a lot more flimsy than Middle-Earth, but that's fine. I'm really enjoying them.

I suspect Thomas Covenant may be next. But you never know. One day I may actually tackle one of Martin's chihuahua killers.

Moogs, Tinfoil And Velour.

I'm listening to the 1973 BBC radio adaptation of Asimov's Foundation series on my daily commute. It's wonderful, a great radio play that is a lot of fun.

But in some ways it's so dated, and I wonder whether it was dated even then. Every device that is operated, every machine that is switched on, is portrayed by noisy synthesisers. Did the producers really think everything would make noise in the future?

A girl wears a chain around her waist, and with a flick of a switch she is cloaked in a nebulous, shifting cloak of light, and accompanied by a high pitched whine. Meanwhile, another character walks into a room with a portable force shield protecting him, and that is completely silent.

I know in a radio play you need sounds to convey actions that can't be seen. And I know synthesisers had only been commonly used for a few years at that time. It reminds me of all those 70s TV shows I love, the ones where people obviously thought that in the future we would all be wearing clothes made of velour and tinfoil.

They're nostalgic. They're a throwback to the age of SF I first started reading, the type of SF that made me fall in love with the genre. And I really enjoy them.

Are You Listening?

My drive to work has been much enriched by listening to podcasts. And I've recently added to that enjoyment by adding radio plays to my journeys.

I must have been 16 or so when I found out one of the radio stations was going to broadcast a BBC adaptation of one of my favourite books, Asimov's Foundation. It was on around midday, and I happened to be home. I threw a cassette tape into Dad's stereo and recorded it.

Unfortunately, what I didn't realise until the end of the broadcast was that this was only one part of an eight part series, and the rest would be played while I was at school. I played that tape a great deal but was never able to hear the rest. Later, of course, I heard Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy (albeit in the abridged format on vinyl) and loved that as well.

I've started listening to Foundation again. I've transferred my Hitchhiker's Guide to mp3 ready for the future. And I've delved well into the past and downloaded a bunch of episodes of Dimension X from the 1950s. This series features a lot of well known stories by famous writers.

The BBC currently has Dangerous Visions, a series of SF radio plays. The most recent being Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?.

And on the near horizon stands Night Terrace, an Australian production featuring some well known Australian talent.

Radio plays suit SF so well. I find they don't date as much as many old TV shows, as the visual aspects are left to the listener's imagination.

Mostly, they take the the monotony out of a daily drive. I'm on two weeks' term break now, most of which will be devoted to writing. But when I need a break from words on the screen, a short radio play and a coffee will re-energise me.

Any other radio play suggestions?

Reading Makes Writing.

The one piece of advice I continually see from professional writers is the need to read as much as possible. This has never really been an issue for me as I've always been a voracious reader.

As a child I sent many hours in the school library, both hunting for books and reading them - sometimes entire YA novels in my lunch break. I was well known by the library staff and they were very supportive. It was there I saw my first SF books. I loved the look of those Asimov novels with his name emblazoned across the top in block letters over the amazing artwork by Chris Foss. And the fact you could lay the books side by side to make an even bigger picture was a bonus.

The name ASIMOV was rather exotic sounding, and the science part of Science Fiction scared me a little. I asked a friend whether he'd read any Asimov, and once he'd told me he had I asked him whether it was able to be read by non-scientists.

And so I borrowed 'Foundation', and loved it. Within a few weeks I'd started buying SF novels from markets and used bookstores, originally based on the cover art. 'The Tower of Glass' by Robert Silverberg was next, followed by a Philip K. Dick, and so on. It wasn't long before I'd built up a knowledge of the authors I liked, and those I didn't 'get'. It took me many years and several attempts to get past the first hundred pages of Frank Herbert's Dune, for example. 

I still regularly read Bob Shaw, John Brunner, Michael G. Coney, Roger Zelazny, Robert Sheckley, Frederik Pohl, Poul Anderson and A. E. van Vogt as well as the old masters mentioned above.

My tastes have broadened. I read a lot of fantasy during the 80s and early 90s, something I haven't done for a long time. And for some reason I mostly read female authors now. I also read a lot of Australian small press - something I didn't even know existed back then.

Which reminds me. I need to catch up on my Analogs, Asimovs and F&SFs. I'm a few months behind. It's time to take a break from the non-fiction I'm currently reading.

Just Like A Good Casserole.

Last week someone asked me about my influences. I know there are certain writers whose work has consciously influenced me, but there are many more who must sit in the deeper recesses of my mind. But just for interest I thought I'd list a few whose writings have meant something to me along the way. I  haven't read many of them for years. Sometimes it's best not to go back.

Enid Blyton. You might laugh at this one, but as a young child I was hooked on the Famous Five adventures and The Faraway Tree. None of her other writings worked for me, but the sheer adventure and mystery of the five, plus the darker fantastical elements of the tree resonated within me.

Capt. W.E. Johns. I don't know how young I was when I first encountered Biggles, but I know I read his stories for years. Great characters and exciting adventures in wonderfully exotic settings. There's even a biography of Biggles, as though he was a real pilot.

John F.C. Westerman.  Until a few years ago, I'd only ever read one book by him. My grandfather gave me Bringing Down The Air Pirates. A SF novel, although the adventure side was similar to Biggles. I finally re-read it a year or two ago, and still enjoyed it. I discovered there was a sequel. It wasn't as good.

Ed McBain. The pen name of Evan Hunter. My uncle introduced me to the 87th Precinct series when I was a teen. I loved them. Excellent police procedurals. And characters that I recall connecting with.

Giovanni Guareschi. An Italian writer from the 30s and 40s who wrote wonderful little short stories, almost vignettes, set in a small town in Italy, and highlighting the ongoing battles between the catholic priest and the communist mayor. My father had a couple of Don Camillo books and I devoured them as a young teenager. I've recently introduced his work to a good friend, who absolutely loves it.

Ngaio Marsh. A New Zealand writer who wrote murder mysteries - and for my money they were much better than Agatha Christie. I recently read a biography on this remarkable woman. I might actually delve back into some of these,, when I find time.

Isaac Asimov. The first of the real SF writers I can recall encountering as a teenager. I think it was the Foundation series - and that's not a bad place to start. Perhaps not the best writer, but full of original and intelligent ideas. Plus the 70s Panther editions had those wonderful Chris Foss covers.

Robert Silverberg. The second real SF writer I read. Tower of Glass I think it was. And then I kept buying and reading his work. I love his short fiction also, and in the 80s I was thrilled when I started on the Majipoor series. I met him at Worldcon, told him he'd been a huge influence and shook his hand.

Philip K. Dick. I don't remember when I bought my first PKD book, but I'm pretty sure it was Time Out of Joint. He quickly became my favourite, and I think I own everything by him. And I love introducing him to others.

Jonathan Carroll. Dark weirdness with elements of magic realism. I picked up two of his works in the late 80s. I needed something to read, the covers intrigued me and they were in the discount bin outside a newsagents. I was hooked.

Haruki Murakami. When living in Japan, a friend bought me one of his books as a Christmas present. Shortly after I rushed out and bought everything else that had been translated. Many years later and that friend is now my wife. She has such good taste.

Katherine Mansfield. Another New Zealander who died far too young and left us far too few short stories. And yet every single one is an absolute work of art. I was introduced to her in University, and I read and re-read her works every year or so.

And then, throughout the 70s and 80s, there was a string of SF writers whose work I read over and over and absolutely loved. Perhaps the only reason they're not listed in the main section is that I just happened to pick up Asimov and Silverberg first. But I need to include the works of Michael G. Coney, Christopher Priest, Christopher Stasheff and Douglas Adams. Followed closely by Robert Sheckley, Bob Shaw, Ian Watson, Jack. L Chalker, C.S. Lewis, Julian May, Stephen Donaldson, and....  well, there are just too many. And I know tomorrow I'll kick myself for leaving someone off the list. Somewhere along the way all these writers, and many others, have infused my mind.

Who do you acknowledge?