The Sword and Laser discussion

New episode is up!

http://www.swordandlaser.com/home/201...

Great episode! The discussion about Neil Stephenson and his thoughts on becoming a writer with a more positive outlook and trying to influence thinking about science in the future made me think it'd be a great theme for those of us who are Laser-aligned writers and interested in the S&L anthology proto-plans.

Good show. Thought Tom got lost there at the end too :P

btw, yes, Hyperion is pretty much cliffhangered at the end.

woot! some great listening for while I do the boring job of ironing lol

Robert wrote: "An odd time for an upload, pretty late in the day for you in the US, but for me in the UK this is a brilliant way to kick off my day. :)"

she posted it after her VF hangout show, so people in that irc chat were the first ones to get the news, so yay us!

also... today's my birthday! Woooo

p.s. sorry if i'm posting that everywhere. i'm just posting that everywhere. cause today's my birthday! i may be a little drunk.

Great show and congrats on being consistent with both the podcast and video show.

Thanks for your great suggestions, Tom and Veronica!

Great show as usual. I'm still slightly aflutter about the mention of my thread. :D

Um, to that sweet guy that left the voicemail: Magicians and Nocturnal might make you cry.

Hai wrote: "Robert wrote: "An odd time for an upload, pretty late in the day for you in the US, but for me in the UK this is a brilliant way to kick off my day. :)"

she posted it after her VF hangout show, so..."

I was drunk when I edited and posted it! Yay absinthe!!

Charles wrote: "Great show and congrats on being consistent with both the podcast and video show."

Thanks!!

Great show as usual. :D

Was wondering what's happening about Game of Thrones chat? Hasn't been as much as I would have thought. :)

So Hyperion is May's pick? I noticed the book hadn't changed on the group page.

Awesome!

"Furry toes are not copyrightable!"
Thanks, Tom, for this deep insight. Made me laugh out loud.

Hai wrote: "cause today's my birthday! i may be a little drunk."

and

Veronica wrote: "I was drunk when I edited and posted it! Yay absinthe!!"

Is it just me, or am I spotting a trend? Query: is SF/F more fun when hammered?
I mean moreso than anything else?

Mike wrote: "So Hyperion is May's pick? I noticed the book hadn't changed on the group page."

That's weird, it was on the page... not sure what happened. I added it back.

About the Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell "problem", she also has a small book of short stories in the same universe, that can be considered as an introduction to her writing and what to expect in the bigger book, even though it was published after.

It's called The Ladies of Grace Adieu: And Other Stories and might be a meet halfway solution, to present in the voting and avoid riots, pitchforks and torches eheheh

André

Wow this club is moving so fast now.

I no longer have time to keep up. Hell the threads started today, it's going to take a few hours to keep up and I have no time to actually read our pick.

So long, S&L.

S&L has been moving fast for awhile. Heck, usually when a new book is introduced, there are "What do you think of the ending?" threads within the first week :P

Maybe just skip May?

Mike wrote: "S&L has been moving fast for awhile. Heck, usually when a new book is introduced, there are "What do you think of the ending?" threads within the first week :P

Maybe just skip May?"

No, it's moving faster than it used to. I think part of it is exacerbated by the video show was the official kickoff for The Magicians! Which was only 2 weeks ago, so it feels like the round-up came sooner (it did, comparatively). Plus the May pick was announced super-early. And there are a LOT more members now so there are a ton of posts...I came home from work today (I cannot check GR from work) and had 500+ new posts across 40 or so topics, from today only, the 12 hours I was at work.

The video show isn't working for me, I just don't have time to stream stuff so I only just today had time to download the Scott Sigler bonus material and the 2nd video episode via a Firefox extension. Hopefully I'll have time at work tomorrow when I can multi-task and watch both episodes I grabbed and listen to this week's show. So that doesn't help the feeling of being behind.

As I said I haven't listened to this show yet, hoefully tomorrow... One thing I will say, whatever the June pick, I hope that they announce it closer to the start of June, not with 2 weeks to go. I think the early May announcement isn't helping matters. Ideally,mthey would wrap up Hyperion in the same show that the next pick is announced, maybe on the 28th of May or in that week.

Of course, I admit, work is nuts for me right now, and will be until August or so. I kinda want to start a "S&L Demographics" thread, i wonder what people in this group do that they can post so prolofically while im at work AND have tome to read 6 books simultaneously. I work in a technical lead position in a tecnical field, when i get home after a 10-12+ hour day, the last thing i want to do js use my brain, so most of my real reading happens on weekends. But back to my original thought, I think it would help to have less overlap with picks, so I hope that whatever the June pick is, it isn't announced until much closer to June and Hyperion is wrapped.

Oh please pardon weird spelling and/or punctuation, I couldn't take being on my computer anymore so typed that all on my iPad.

I think they announce the pick early so people have time to get the book. In my club we generally announce books a couple months in advance. With members all around the world some who have to ship books out, others waiting on libraries, etc. it's not fair to announce the book right when the discussion starts.

Kim wrote: "I think they announce the pick early so people have time to get the book. In my club we generally announce books a couple months in advance. With members all around the world some who have to ship ..."

As a long-time member of this club (as in, since it started wayyyy back in the Ning days), I can attest that that isn't the norm for this group, though it may be the way it's moving. And if so, it is what it is, but the discussion on the shows should really be contained in that time period (again this time was weird because the official Magicians kickoff was so late).

Personally I wish it was 6 weeks for each book but I realize that would probably turn more people off.

terpkristin wrote: "Kim wrote: "I think they announce the pick early so people have time to get the book. In my club we generally announce books a couple months in advance. With members all around the world some who h..."

Books are now monthly. They start on the first of the month, and end on the last day of the month. We announce the book as early as possible to allow for people to obtain the book (and start reading if they finished the other pick, didn't like the other pick, or can handle reading more than one book at a time). There is a kick-off and wrap-up episode of the video show within the period of that month, and on-going discussions here on Goodreads and on the audio podcast.

This is the best we can do with the new circumstances. I'm sorry to see you go, and hope you'll considering picking up on books and discussions when you have the time.

Another great episode guys. Veronica, I totally support your idea about picking a book that's complete ie not part of a series. Not because I don't like series, I in fact love series, but because it will give me a chance to finish the series I was reading before I joined this group a couple weeks ago. I was just past the middle of the Malazan series by Steve Erikson with a goal of finishing the series by the end of this month. That's not going to happen now thanks to you guys. I'm loving Hyperion and if I love the first book I have to finish the series so I hope to finish the whole Cantos off in a couple weeks and hopefully then I'll get to sneak in Book 8 of Malazan before next months pick. And how the hell am I going to start on Scott Sigler's stuff - tell me that! I can't even listen to his audio books because I'm only 3 books in to Harry Potter in my car mp3 player! So you have my permission to stick to 1 book series till I catch up and then feel free after that to go back to books that are part of series - I'll keep you posted because I know you care.

Seriously, love your work guys.

Darnit the app doesn't let me quote. Anyway, V, thanks for replying. I'm not "leaving" but the new format means I'm not going to be as active. Pretty much some of my worst fears about the new format realized, plus some I didn't expect. But without this group I wouldn't be introduced to so much new stuff so I'm still going to be around.

terpkristin wrote: "Darnit the app doesn't let me quote. Anyway, V, thanks for replying. I'm not "leaving" but the new format means I'm not going to be as active. Pretty much some of my worst fears about the new forma..."

That app is horrible for the conversation threads. I finally deleted it and just use the web interface on my phone now. This involves A LOT of pinching to zoom but is sooooo much better than that stinker app. Let the web rule forever....

Tip: the font is bigger when you hold the apple device sideways.

Ok. Now that I'm on a real computer and I've actually listened to the show.

First off, great show. I love listening to it and I will say it made my relatively crappy day better. I also watched the Scott Sigler bonus content which was interesting and most of the 2nd video show (apparently the tool I used to get it corrupted the last few minutes).

Regarding the "hard science" background, I second Tom's recommendation of Krauss. He tries to make physics accessible, and has some great videos on
YouTube and some great books on stuff that will be helpful. Also, I think the person who posted that thread (which I'll hunt down and post the same in) shouldn't be afraid to reach out to experts for their opinion while you're writing. Looks like there are some S&L'ers who could help, or maybe going to a local
college/university, might ask them to read a few passages and let you know if there is anything that's particularly crazy.

Funny to hear Tom say that most of what he reads now is for S&L. This is what I was trying to get at in my above post, it feels like now that it's definitely one book a month, we're moving quicker, and for mere mortals who work multiple jobs or don't have jobs that are conducive to reading or (as in my case) work long hours in front of a computer doing technical stuff, I can't fathom reading sci-fi when I get home, it's too close to work which I just left. Sometimes 4 weeks is tough, but it is what it is and I respect that you guys are doing what you think is best.

Also, as I said earlier in the thread, it's definitely feels like The Magicians was rushed since it was kicked off mid-month (instead of early in the month) and because Hyperion was announced so early. Last night I literally got home from work and there were so many posts on Hyperion, I didn't have time or energy to read them all, and that was on the first of the month, when the book officially started. It's hard to keep up with conversations when that happens...I'm really intrigued on the demographics for this group and might start a thread about it.

I'm glad you guys talked about The Magicians a bit in the audio show as part of the wrap-up, since I know that myself and others can't watch the video show with any regularity if at all. I'm probably just more vocal about it than others.

Regarding Hyperion, I can attest that you don't need to have a strong (or any) background in classic literature. My background is woefully incomplete, but I've read Hyperion before and can confirm that the book is quite enjoyable even if you don't get all the nods that Simmons does. It does have a cliffhanger ending which annoyed me until I learned
that it was the first in a series (which sadly took multiple years for me to learn).

Looking forward to Veronica being a dictator. I think she should pick it outright instead of opening it up for a vote, though obviously I presume she'll use the thread as a starting point...but if it's a poll, hopefully the poll results won't go public until later in May...much later. ;) It kinda feels like we've been talking about Hyperion for a month, given the activity in the threads, even though the book only officially started yesterday.

Anyway this is long and most people are probably TL;DR. I'm glad that you guys do the audio and sad that me not being able to watch the video with any sort of regularity means I'll miss some of the discussions and interviews, but at least I'll get my fix with the audio stuff.

Yay, new show! In reference to What Was Veronica Drinking, here's an article about absinthe and wormwood: http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek...

tl;dr - the only hallucinogen present in absinthe in high enough quantity to have an effect is...alcohol. A LOT of alcohol.

I'm excited for Hyperion because it will be the first book I've actually managed to read along with the rest of the club! Most of the other laser picks have been books I've already read, and most of the sword picks haven't interested me. Hyperion (which I've also read before) just happened to come up right as I finished another book with nothing else immediate to read, and it's been so much fun keeping up with the discussion live instead of months later! Plus it's one of my favorite books.

(This does probably mean I'll be reading the sequels during June instead of the sword pick, but if it winds up being Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, that's fine. What's the word for when you wish you'd lemmed a book?)

Jess wrote: "What's the word for when you wish you'd lemmed a book?"

Lemgret?

terpkristin wrote: "Looking forward to Veronica being a dictator. I think she should pick it outright instead of opening it up for a vote, though obviously I presume she'll use the thread as a starting point...but if it's a poll, hopefully the poll results won't go public until later in May...much later. ;)"

Agreed. I don't want to know what the June pick will be until we are getting ready to read it.

Oh – Veronica & Tom, great show as always. I'm having a lot of fun going back through your old shows and listening to them. I'm on podcast #20. Keep up the great work!

Kim wrote: "Jess wrote: "What's the word for when you wish you'd lemmed a book?"

Lemgret?"

Should we add it to the Glossary?
http://swordandlaser.wikia.com/wiki/G...

Veronica wrote: "Should we add it to the Glossary?
http://swordandlaser.wikia.com/wiki/G..."

How about that entry?

dead-tree edition seems like a bit of a discriminatory remark, doesn't it? having a paper version is a perfectly acceptable lifestyle choice.

Hai wrote: "dead-tree edition seems like a bit of a discriminatory remark, doesn't it? having a paper version is a perfectly acceptable lifestyle choice."

Discriminatory to who? Trees?

This is the first Podcast I listened to. I learned about Sword and Laser through Geek and Sundry. I really love Sword and Laser an thoroughly enjoyed the Podcast!

Jess wrote: "tl;dr - the only hallucinogen present in absinthe in high enough quantity to have an effect is...alcohol. A LOT of alcohol."

Yeah, once at a party in my younger and stupider days, I polished off almost half a bottle of (70%) absinthe myself. Almost half of that was straight: no sugar, no water, no nothing. All it did was get me really, really, really drunk.

Kristin, I know what you mean and agree with a lot of it. It's a double-edged sword. More structure means it's more predictable, which can make it easier to plan out my reading. And I would never wish less success and popularity on Tom and Veronica. But it does lose that intimate feeling when there is so much posting it's a hobby in and of itself just to keep up :P

I might just restrict my S&L board reading to the book discussions, or something along those lines. I tried to leave S&L for a few months but I miss the exposure to new sci-fi and fantasy works, and the passion of the readers here.

With the book read being limited to 1 month reading time I would suggest that they be kept to a sensible length. 1,000 page doorstops should be out. Slow readers aside, most of us read several books and do not always have time to finish such a book in 1 month. 500-600 pages should be about the max. Just my 2 cents.

Lemgret is perfect :)

Kim wrote: "Hai wrote: "dead-tree edition seems like a bit of a discriminatory remark, doesn't it? having a paper version is a perfectly acceptable lifestyle choice."

Discriminatory to who? Trees?"

hey, some of my best friends are e-book impaired!

Love the podcast very nice listen. I agree whole heartly with the big idea piece I just think true innovation is real hard to create...Once in a hundred years is pretty fast paced...I agree with Terpkristin about the amount of stuff to follow now but I just do what I can when I can because the group and the shows are so engaging. Keep it coming...I always think that V should dictator book reads...unless she doesn't want to...

I'm so happy with the no-series limit! I don't mind a series actually, but I don't read incomplete books, if I can help it. It's possible to write a series and complete a story. Iain M. Banks for example.

I suppose it's because I'm a slow reader and I don't want to get stuck in one world forever. And it always feels like a marketing ploy.

Don wrote: "I'm so happy with the no-series limit! I don't mind a series actually, but I don't read incomplete books, if I can help it. It's possible to write a series and complete a story. Iain M. Banks for e..."

It probably IS a marketing ploy. I hear A Song of Ice & Fire used to be a TRILOGY>

Why all the Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell hate? :(

If it gets picked I'd be able to participate in a read along for the first time, but everyone can't stand it. :D

Joseph wrote: "Why all the Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell hate? :(

If it gets picked I'd be able to participate in a read along for the first time, but everyone can't stand it. :D"

Plenty of people like it, don't worry. I'm one of them. I just feel it's a touch too long and Veronica's already lemmed it once. It seems harsh to make her read something she obviously does not enjoy. And she's not the only one - Jonathan Strange is not everyone's cup of tea. As has been said, it's very much a Marmite book.

Also, I meant to add onto the untranslatable words portion of the show; my personal favourite is the German Sehnsucht. It basically translates to longing for something unfinished and often unimaginable, it's often described as a longing for a different life. It's a type of nostalgia but not for anything common or physical.

C. S. Lewis for instance was obsessed with the word and frequently attempted to describe it.

Sehnsucht is somewhat similar to the Portuguese word Saudade, for those who speak Portuguese.

Agatha wrote: "my personal favourite is the German Sehnsucht. It basically translates to longing for something unfinished and often unimagin..."

It's also a great Rammstein album.

aldenoneil wrote: "It's also a great Rammstein album. "

Oh yeah, that too. Second only to Mutter, if you ask me.