A round-up of some cool web finds

In my limited wandering around the web, I stumble across interesting finds, which make me go "hmm... I should write about that." But because I'm the lazy sod that I am, I'm just going to share the links with you.

In honour of the upcoming Valentine's Day weekend, I want to point you to this great article by film critic Daniel M. Kimmel. He looks at romance in Sci-fi movies and shows that the inspiration that love provides in great storytelling doesn't end with rom-coms or literary fiction. 

Speaking of literary fiction, there is a spirited debate in the UK about whether speculative fiction will be left out of the Man Booker Prize - again. The genre is reaching a new golden age, and its British writers  like Neil Gaiman and China Mieville are at the forefront of the trend. It might be that the argument is a moot point. Despite the debate, writers like Kazuo Ishiguro in his latest work, "Never Let Me Go," are blurring the lines between genres and still writing good stories, whether the Booker Prize committee is taking notice or not. 

And if you want to read some of the coolest speculative fiction that aren't quite making it past the publishers inboxes? Check out Slushpilereader.com. Admittedly, some of these stories could use a little professional editing, but they are enthusiastic, fresh and vibrant voices that, for some reason, are flying under the radar. 


Finally, I want to say thank you to some Facebook commenters who pointed me to Maurice Broaddus, during a spirited debate about race and fantasy fiction. Mr. Broaddus is an African-American speculative fiction writer who's doing some cool stuff with the genre. I haven't read his series "Knights of Breton Court" yet, but dude, I really want to.