ucbcad:ucbesvax.turner (05/01/83)
#R:ucbesvax:1700002:ucbesvax:1700003:000:1312
ucbesvax!turner Apr 30 17:10:00 1983
Imagine my intense embarassment: my meta-blowtorch on science
fiction ("*Sigh* Fie on thee...", for those who receive this note
as an orphaned response) had a reference to "The Moon is a Harsh
Mistress" without naming the author. Since the whole thrust of
the inflammatory part of that note was the implicit exclusiveness of
much of the discussion of science fiction in this newsgroup, it
was an exlemplary faux pas to mention a book and assume that all
readers knew right away who wrote it.
The author of "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" is Robert Heinlein,
who mainly writes science fiction, although he wrote rather a lot
of stories for confession magazines to stay alive in the early
years of his writing career. Thomas Disch has also paid his dues.
Fandom might do well to ask themselves whether their book allowances
might not be better spent on some relative unknown who writes well,
than on "2010", or "Foundation IX" or some other block-buster written
by authors I choose not to name. It might save some otherwise-ignored
talent the ignominy of hackwork. Such writers are less likely to
rip you off or let you down if their careers ever take off.
Flaming Off into the Wild Blue Yonder,
Michael Turner
ucbvax!esvax:turner