Posted on 12/04/2013 8:13:32 AM PST by Kip Russell
One of the things that makes science fiction so popular is that it means many things to many people. Some people will insist that they are not even reading science fiction when they read a Star Wars novel or a novel dealing with alternate history. That is what makes Sci-Fi so wonderful! Its easy to love and difficult to define. What other genre has so many sub-genres? You have hard Sci-fi, often times written by people who actually were scientists. Theres Cyber Punk, adventurous Space Opera, Military Sci-Fi, Alternate History, Steam Punk, and even Space Westerns. Something for almost everybody!
In truth, speculative fiction dates back hundreds of years but modern Sci-Fi began to develop as we know it in the 19th century with writers like H.G. Wells and Jules Verne. But it was in 1926 that Sci-fi really began to take off with the creation of the pulp magazine, Amazing Stories, the first publication devoted to science fiction. The magazine survived for nearly 80 years and helped to launch the careers of greats such as Roger Zelanzy, E.E. Doc Smith, Jack Williamson, and countless others.
Trying to pick the 15 greatest writers is no easy task. Ive based my list on a number of factors including body of work, influence, awards won, and staying power. With that in mind my list does tend to weigh heavily towards older writers. Another factor was that I went with writers who are predominantly known for their science fiction. Many great fantasy writers have written exceptional Sci-Fi stories but I decided to go with only those known for their science fiction. Ultimately is was more of a challenge to decide who to keep off rather than who to keep on.
(Excerpt) Read more at mania.com ...
oen wonders why j. michael stazinaki didn’t make the list.
I didn’t realize how many science fictions authors I had read before I saw this list. I am more of a nerd than I thought.
Still, L. Ron Hubbard was a heckuva sci-fi writer. The only things I don’t like about Mission Earth and Battlefield is that I’ve already read them.
Nope, and without them I consider it a bulls*** list. They may have an excuse for that at the link, but I don't care what it is.
I really enjoy the near-future scifi like Clarke wrote. Is anyone doing that anymore?
He's written very little sf literature as compared to his work as a producer of television sf.
A Bertram Chandler
Er...to each their own :-)
Joe Halderman was my late hubby’s favorite.
Where are Mary Shelley and Jules Verne on this list?
Also forgot obozo, Jay Carney, Paul Krugman, Frank Rich, Chris Mathews, Wretched Madcow, et al.
I’ve read “The Lazarus Effect” and all the Dune books by him. Not bad but the movie sucked. The HBO series was much better. Blade Runner is sort of the Bach of sci-fi movies. I like Larry Niven books for the realism, and I wish they would make movies like that.
http://bestsciencefictionbooks.com/near-future-science-fiction.php#crowd
You also might want to check out the "mundane science fiction" movement:
http://bestsciencefictionbooks.com/mundane-science-fiction.php
A core value of movement seeks to reinvent Sci Fi. Mundane Science Fiction seeks to abandon the wondrous, and now nearly mythical, elements of Sci Fi--ray guns, aliens, distant solar systems, myth-like faster than like travel. Mundane Sci Fi favours stories about scientific realities--biotechnology and environmental change. Mundane Sci Fi prefers topics that are closer to Earth because Earth is really all we have. These writers wish to reawaken the sense of wonder of the Earth and the dangers it faces now.
Basically, Mundane SF deals with a very plausable future -- and a very near future at that. If a SF read features any sort of technology that's far out of the ordinary (light speed, wormhole travel, time travel, etc), than it's NOT mundane science fiction.
He's not including any pre-1926 work.
Thanks!
bfl
Anne McCaffrey
Terry Brooks
J. R. R. Tolkien
C. S. Lewis
Aldous Huxley
Michael Crichton
Katharine Kerr
Theodore Sturgeon
Lin Carter
Philip José Farmer
Robert Bloch
Michael Moorcock
Hal Clement
David Brin
Ursula K. Le Guin
Terry Carr
Rod Serling
Dean R. Koontz
H. P. Lovecraft
George Pal
Kurt Vonnegut, Jr
BUT, Isaac Asimov tops my all time favorite. There are so many good ones, it’s hard to pick from. A LOT of good women authors as well. I tried not to include those on your original list but there isn’t a single one I haven’t read.
???
Grimes! A great series.
And I don’t see Jerry Pournelle. If Niven is on there, Pournelle should be, too!
I think the series was broadcast by the Si-fy channel rather than HBO and I agree it was better but you still just can't capture the scope and depth of Dune on the screen.
I distinctly remember reading Asimov’s Foundation series over 40 years ago. Made a huge impression.
Recently tried to read it again. Almost unreadable.
Hopefully some of his enormous body of work holds up better.
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