Roger Zelazny discussion

The December issue of Locus has an interesting article about Zelazny's writings, and it's now posted on-line at this link:

http://www.locusmag.com/Reviews/2011/...

Thanks, Chris. That was a good & interesting article. When people say they don't like short stories, I always wonder if they've ever read his. He could fit larger worlds into fewer words than any other author I know.

Excellent! Thanks, ckovacs.

Thanks for this.

It was interesting article.

It mentioned several of the reasons i was in awe of Zelazny when i read Amber, his short stories. He changes styles, voices often. He is a rare author then and now.

Good article. But it feels surreal to me--how can you be an SF/Fantasy fan and not read Zelazny? :-) The author made good suggestions. One of my favorite short stories was "Home is the Hangman", which one several awards.

One of the things I've always loved about Zelazny's writing is how effortless and natural he makes it seem, how easily he makes the reader feel included in the story. He uses language fairly simply but still often beautifully. This, I think, is what makes him great. It is certainly what makes him one of my favorite writers. I like Martin in general but am not a fan of ASOIAF. While the relative "safety" of the story might have something to do with it, I think it's more to do with the fact that Martin takes a tale and says in several thousand pages what Zelazny could have said in a few hundred (and probably more artfully imo).

In any event, I really enjoyed the article. Thanks for sharing Chris!

Jim wrote: "Thanks, Chris. That was a good & interesting article. When people say they don't like short stories, I always wonder if they've ever read his. He could fit larger worlds into fewer words than any..."

Thats because some people think SFF books are only fat book series. My brother can not read short stories because he thinks books can be fantastic only if they are fat fantasy books.

Some fans never care to try great short stories authors. Authors like Zelazny is why i think short story format is my ideal in SFF stories. Create a great story in 30 pages is impressive.

Mohammed wrote: "...Create a great story in 30 pages is impressive. "

And he did quite a few in a lot less. "The Monster And The Maiden" & "Collector's Fever" both come to mind.

Jim wrote: "Mohammed wrote: "...Create a great story in 30 pages is impressive. "

And he did quite a few in a lot less. "The Monster And The Maiden" & "Collector's Fever" both come to mind."

Yeah i have read stories that short by him. Like Reg says the reason i rate Zelazny so high in my fav authors despite i have read only 3 books is he can write quality in 200 page novel more than Martin type author can do in 1000 pages.

I smiled at part of the article that compared to Martin. Its not much of a risk writing huge books, harder to write quality than quantity.

I'm actually the opposite of your brother, Mohammed--I don't like reading books that are too large, and part of that is probably because Zelazny has conditioned me to believe that you can create an incredible story in 200 pages or less.

I generally prefer variety in my reading--and by that, I mean that I like to switch stories often. For example, even if I really enjoy the first book in a series, I generally won't read the second right away--I'll move onto something else instead. (Unless we're talking about a re-read of Amber, of course--one MUST make exceptions. =P) And, for that reason, I don't like reading 800-page books because I hate being locked into one story for so long; in the time it takes me to read that 800-page book, I could have read 3 smaller books, all with different characters with different ideas in different worlds.

It probably also doesn't help that I rarely give up on a novel once I've started it, no matter how much I may dislike it . . . it makes it really hard to start an 800-page book, knowing that I'll force myself to suffer through it even if I'm not enjoying it.

Also, if you guys are lookin' for a nice short story that's also seasonally relevant, perhaps it's time for a re-read (or initial read!) of "Prince of the Powers of This World"!

I read it every Christmas. Beats the dickens out of A Christmas Carol!

Alazzar wrote: "I'm actually the opposite of your brother, Mohammed--I don't like reading books that are too large, and part of that is probably because Zelazny has conditioned me to believe that you can create an..."

Im like that too authors like Vance,Zelazny,Dunsany,many other SFF legends etc has conditioned me to think short stories, shorter novels is good and you dont need long novels to tell stories.

Variety is also me, look at my bookshelves,genres,classic,general fiction. The trouble i cant read books in a series, i go to different authors all the times. I have like 30 authors i rate highly in my Goodreads Fav authors list.

What else is that story in besides Manna from Heaven, Alazzar? That books isn't easy to find or particularly affordable.

Jim, try page 157 of The Collected Stories of Roger Zelazny: Volume 6: The Road to Amber. I believe you have all six volumes and as you know, ALL of Zelazny's stories are in those six volumes with the sole exception of a story for UNICEF that was never published and lost.

Chris

Yeah, Jim--what Chris said. Volume 6!

You can also get it where it was originally published, in Christmas Forever. That book's out of print, but they've got used copies on Amazon for as little as $0.58:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listin...

I'll be honest, though--I'm reading Christmas Forever right now, and the rest of the book isn't all that great . . .

Thanks! Nice to know about "Christmas Forever", too.

Yeah, like I said, a lot of the stories in that anthology aren't so hot, but it's dirt cheap and there are a few decent ones. I particularly liked "We Three Kings," probably because it had a sort of Zelaznyish feel in that it mixed several religions/myths/whatever.

Who's that by?

Alan Dean Foster. I've never read any of his other stuff . . . do you know if he's any good?

I've never read a short story by Foster. I've read quite a few of his novels, but it's been years. Quick, light reading, not too filling, but fun. His two favorite series of mine were Flinx & Spell Singer, both of which my kids liked, too. He's also done a lot of movie novelizations that aren't bad, including the 2d Star Wars one, that never was... Can't think of the name of it off hand, though.

Jim wrote: "I've never read a short story by Foster. I've read quite a few of his novels, but it's been years. Quick, light reading, not too filling, but fun. His two favorite series of mine were Flinx & Spell Singer, both of which my kids liked, too. He's also done a lot of movie novelizations that aren't bad, including the 2d Star Wars one, that never was... Can't think of the name of it off hand, though. ..."

Star Wars: Splinter of the Mind's Eye

Thanks, Chris. Yeah, that's it, "Splinter of the Minds Eye". I still have a copy of it, in fact.

Slipt was a neat stand alone by Foster. A neat paranormal ability.

The Man Who Used the Universe was another one that I really liked.