Sci-fi and Heroic Fantasy discussion

Andrea just reminded me that the sun is getting low on this year. So, once again it's time to start thinking about setting up our Group Reading Challenges for 2021. (I know everyone's busy with the end of year holidays, but not coincidentally the new year starts right after. :)

(For those who haven't participated before, our Group Challenges let you set a reading goal for yourself to read a certain number of books that fit the criteria of that Challenge. It's a Science Fiction & Fantasy oriented complement to the annual Goodreads Annual Reading Challenge. Because each Challenge lets you set your own goal for the number of books you want to read, it's a form of self motivation, not a competition.)

For 2020 we had (have) eleven year-long Challenges:

  The SF&F 2020 Reading Challenge
Set yourself a goal for reading Science Fiction and Fantasy books in 2020.

  The SF&F 2020 BINGO Challenge
Read books matching squares on our 2020 BINGO card. Fill in a line, or do the whole card. (I'll get to deciding what's on the card in a bit.)

  The SF&F 2020 Explorer Challenge
Set yourself a goal to read SF&F books by authors you've never read before. Explore new worlds, find new favorites!

  The SF&F 2020 Awards Challenge
Set yourself a goal to read SF&F books which have won awards, such as the Hugo and Nebula, or any other award(s) you care to use.

  The SF&F 2020 Female Author Challenge
Set yourself a goal to read SF&F works by female authors.

  The SF&F 2020 Stand-Alone Challenge
Set yourself a goal to read stand-alone SF&F novels.

  The SF&F 2020 Sub-genre Focus Challenge
Set yourself a goal to read novels in a specific sub-genre of science fiction or fantasy, such as "time travel", "cyberpunk", "space travel", "urban fantasy" or "stories about dragons" (Tell us which sub-genre you've chosen in your challenge's comment section.)

  The SF&F 2020 Short Story Challenge
Set yourself a goal to read SciFi & Fantasy anthologies, short stories, novelettes & novella.

  The SF&F 2020 Series Completist Challenge
Set yourself a goal to finish reading all works in SF&F series.

  The SF&F 2020 Graphic Novel Challenge
Set yourself a goal to read SF&F in Graphic Novel form.

  The SF&F 2020 Historian Challenge
Set yourself a goal to read SF&F from its early days. Vern, Shelley, Wells or whoever. Pre-1940. (Pick whatever date you want to define "early days" by using the comments.)

* You can see all our past & present SF&HF Group Challenges here.

Any new ideas for 2021? Without any new suggestions, I'll probably just create the same 11 challenges as last year, because I have no imagination. (If I'm feeling exceptionally creative, I may change the colors of the thumbnails. :) Do people want something else? Some groups seem to do challenges such as books with a title starting with each letter of the alphabet (the goal presumably being 26 books, assuming it's in English language group.) Or Challenges to read books by authors in different states or countries. (By the way, there's no reason all the challenges need to last a full calendar year; that just seems... traditional.)

Please share your thoughts below!

A related question to the BINGO Challenge, what would people like for the 2021 BINGO Challenge Card?

Our 2020 SF&F Reading BINGO Card was



I'll definitely shuffle the card by re-arranging any squares that we keep. But it would be more interesting to add some new criteria (which means replacing some existing squares.)

In past years, other suggested squares were:

Space Opera
Epic Fantasy
Something featuring Dragons
Something featuring Aliens
Something featuring Angels, Demons, and/or Gods
Something featuring a Unicorn
Urban Fantasy (Fantasy in Modern World)
Military SF/F
Time Travel
Robots and/or AIs
Apocalyptic / Dystopian
Cyberpunk
Military SF/F
Steampunk
Bio-SciFi
Climate SF (CliFi)
Time Travel
Near Future
Gunpowder Fantasy
SF/F Mystery
SF/F Romance
Parallel/Alternate Worlds
Debut SF/F Novel*
Stand-alone Novel*
New-to-you-author*
Award Winning SF/F*
Genre-blender (both SF & Fantasy elements)
SF/F set in Non-Western Country or Culture
YA
SF&F Anthology*
Pre-20th Century SF/F*
Graphic SF/F Story*
Humor
Something published in the 21st century
Something published in 2021
Something published pre-1900, 1918, 1940, 1950, 2000, or some other magical year.*
SF/F Translated from other than English
Set in a real, non-English-speaking country
Non-human protagonist
Female protagonist
Male protagonist
Female Author*
Male Author
LGBTQ Author
Author of Color
Made into a TV show or movie
By a favorite author
Social Sci-Fi
Hard Sci-Fi
High Fantasy
Alternative form - a poem, song, script, or essay

* = There's also a Group Challenge for that category, so maybe redundant?

Since there's only 25 squares on the BINGO Card, not every one could be accommodated.

Which of last years should we keep?
Are there any more you'd like to add?
Which of those do you like?

(Remember the point is to inspire you to read something outside your regular choices.)

Yay bingo! 2020 didn't go so well for me, but I'm excited for a new card!

For bingo, here are some I think we could keep:

* Alternate form - It's a good push to read plays, radio plays, poetry, screenplays. But it also allows those doing the graphic novel challenge to read a GN.
* Anthology
* Award Winner
* Genre-blender
* New-To-You Author
* Standalone
* Some version of "Published before 1950" (or earlier)

Possible switch-ups:
* Maybe a new protagonist-based one ("--protagonist" or "a protagonist who...")
* Maybe a category like "book with a beautiful cover"
* Some genres not on the 2019 or 2020 cards: Military SF/F, Apocalyptic/Dystopian, Steampunk/Gaslight Fantasy
* I always love High/Epic Fantasy
* I'm ambivalent about author-based categories (not something I think that much about), but I wouldn't be against one of those.
* Have we ever had Gunpowder Fantasy? Atompunk or Dieselpunk? Not sure I've read any of them, but I'm willing to give it a go.

I'm good with all of Angie's keepers, and I kinda like how we made the "free" slot tie in to an actually free book. And "Translated" is usually good to get in someone from another country/culture.

And can have a "published before" as far back as you want to go (I've got The Illiad and the Odyssey so I'll hit the mark no matter what you pick). Published in 2021 is always nice too.

Now, let's see, my reading theme for next year is "Something featuring Angels, Demons, and/or Gods" so that's a handy one to add for me. Or, I was thinking maybe something less directly connected like:

- Based on mythology
- Features a character with wings
- Features a trip to an underworld (I'd be fine with that including the seedy part of town kind of thing)
- Features a religion (can be an invented one, like Dune)
- Non-fiction SFF (could be an author bio, or a "textbook" on mythology, or something like "the science of star trek" or "the encyclopedia of fantasy worlds")

Now not related to my theme but still good match from Angie's list:
- Gunpowder/Military
- Apocalyptic/Dystopian
- Steampunk
- "Beautiful cover" one is kind of cool :)

And scanning through past suggestions that might be helpful to me:

- Humour
- Urban Fantasy
- Not sure this works for me but "Made into a TV show or movie" is excellent flip on the Media Tie-in
- By a favorite author
- Non-human protagonist
- Set in a real, non-English-speaking country

Other ideas:
- Middle Grade/Children's
- A complete Duology or a Trilogy? (need to read all books in the same year, though only add the last one to your shelf)
- Complete a series (need to read the last book only)
- We have a publishing date, what about a publishing size, like "At least 800 pages" or something?

Well, whatever gets picked, I always have fun with this challenge.

RE: Andrea's ideas

Lots of great ideas.

I almost put Middle Grade/Children's on my list of suggestions, so I heartily second that one. I'm doing a Children's Classics challenge next year, and some of them are fantasies.

I love the idea of something based on mythology or related to religion. Those could work well for sci-fi readers, as well as fantasy readers.

I like the idea of non-fiction related to sci-fi or fantasy.

Book by a favorite author is always nice for a comfort read.

So I did really do it this year but I had the idea that we could do more with the cover/names rather than just content fir fun?

Also like to try and be more inclusive (so indigenous author, or non US/Uk or such)

Rachel wrote: "I had the idea that we could do more with the cover/names rather than just content fir fun?..."

Sorry, I don't know what that means. Can you cite a few specific square descriptions for me?

Mmm like - a cover with red or black, or title with a number - something not about the content?

A prompt to celebrate diversity? Perhaps:
Set outside the US or UK, or by a non-European/North American author
Author of colour
I really like based on mythology as suggested above but would include folklore as well to cast the net wider

OK, here's a draft of the 2021 SF&F reading BINGO card:



Comments? Corrections...?

Karen wrote: "Set outside the US or UK, or by a non-European/North American author ..."

You can probably use "Translated into English" to cover most of that.

Rachel wrote: "Mmm like - a cover with red or black, or title with a number - something not about the content?"

OK, got a couple of those in. Purple cover, Beautifuly cover, 900+ pages. On my kindle I can edit in any cover I want & change the font size, so I'm thinking, "done." :)

Purple is going to be my theme for the year. :)

Purple? *glances through her book pile* Actually found one, LOL! Although it would be kind of the opposite of 900 pages, it's one of my shortest. I do have one over 900 pages but calling it purple would be a stretch. And wouldn't call either of them beautiful :D

Peaces Talks that I'm reading now is kinda purple...but wrong year, need it for this year's bingo.

Non-purple ideas for the future - takes place in spring/summer/autumn/winter (can do all 4 in one year for extra challenge or rotate through them)...if someone hasn't read the Long Price Quartet or Dragonlance would be easy, but more interesting for others readers like me that have to find less obvious choices...

Regardless of the slots picked, looking forward to seeing what kinds of interesting things I'll be reading next year!

G33z3r wrote: "Comments? Corrections...?"

Well, "apocalyptic SF/F" literally means "SF/F that reveals a hidden truth", and not what I think you intend there.

First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English, from Late Latin apocalypsis, from Greek apokálypsis “revelation,” equivalent to apokalýp(tein) “to uncover, reveal” (apo- “away, off, apart” + kalýptein “to cover, conceal”) + -sis noun suffix; see apo-, -sis

Everything else looks good. I'm not generally a fan of military fiction or the politics that usually comes along with a ruler-protagonist, but the year is long and I'm sure I can find something.

Hmm, now that you pointed out apocalyptic...I mean it kind of implies it isn't POST-apocalyptic but in fact taking place during an actual apocalypse which is a lot less common. In fact given my reading theme I was thinking of finding a book that involves one of the 4 riders, though likely that would mean the book itself isn't actually about an apocalypse, so far they were either romances (Famine falls in love with someone) or YA (some teenager wakes up one day and oh by the way, you're War). But still, close enough I think :) But that one is going to be later in the year since I'll need the library for that, don't actually own one of those books.

The 900 plus pages will be easy as I’m still working through Oathbringer which as most of Sanderson’s is 1200+ pages!

Andrea wrote: "Hmm, now that you pointed out apocalyptic...I mean it kind of implies it isn't POST-apocalyptic but in fact taking place during an actual apocalypse which is a lot less common. In fact given my rea..."

I'm just doing something that's tagged Apocalyptic on the book's main page. It'll make my life easier. :)

Andrea wrote: "Hmm, now that you pointed out apocalyptic...I mean it kind of implies it isn't POST-apocalyptic but in fact taking place during an actual apocalypse which is a lot less common."

That's sort of what I'm talking about. An actual apocalypse is not a disaster, but a revelation of secrets. In scholarly works it has always had its literal meaning, and in fact there are dozens of apocalypses in academia and thousands of academic papers about them that have nothing to do with disasters. It never meant "disaster" until people started using the word in pop culture in the late 19th century. Some influential person mistakes a meaning, and the mistake spreads so much that when the general public tries to read the large body of scholarly work, now they think it's talking about something completely different.

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are called that because they appear in the book called The Apocalypse of John, AKA the Book of Revelation. (It is well-known by both titles to scholars, because "apocalypse" means exactly the same thing as "revelation".) And because that particular apocalypse involves an eschaton (which actually does mean "end of the world"), and it's the best known of all apocalypses, people think every apocalypse involves an eschaton.

So, an apocalyptic SF/fantasy book should involve a major secret being uncovered.

(To clarify, this is just me generally lamenting the growing barrier between academia and the general public. I know the pop meaning is here to stay, and a lot of scholars don't even use the word anymore for that reason, but we can't go back and change all of the existing literature throughout the past millennium, so just be advised if you happen to want to read old works at some point, they will be using the literal meaning. Hopefully that can avoid some confusion of "Why is this ancient book called an apocalypse when nothing bad is happening in it?")

Languages always evolve. "Awful" used to mean "full of awe" not something terrible (though a dragon can inspire awe and horror at the same time), but somehow became purely negative along the way. Which is why when a friend of mine got dragged to her roommates Bible group and they tried to extract the meaning of every word, she was rolling her eyes as they were totally missing the fact that the meaning of the words had evolved over time so were actually understanding the passages wrong (notwithstanding mistranslations which resulted in plowing fields using unicorns and such)

I call it "mutate", but yes, they do. And it only really bothers me when it's a word with such an unambiguous etymology and a long academic use as "apocalypse".

You understand completely why it's a problem with that example of your friend! It becomes a barrier to understanding ancient works.

(But "awe" and "terror" actually are pretty much the same thing.)

If someone wants an additional challenge on the side (it isn't all SF/F) there's another one here from Indigo (Canadian bookseller)

https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/...

Be extra interesting to try to warp some that were not meant to be SF/F to become so, like "helping the environment" or "true crime" even "self-help"...I know there are some "handbooks" for wizards and heroes and things that could count as a self-help kind of category!