Charlie StrossJul 30, 2023
Psst: if you're on my crit list on Dreamwidth (closed, not taking new applications, thanks), you might want to check out what I just uploaded there.
Show threadCharlie StrossJul 30, 2023

Addendum: this is draft 2 of the space opera that, well, my elevator pitch was "Iain isn't writing any more, alas, so let's see if I can do something that makes readers feel the same way as his Culture novels without in any way being derivative of the Culture".

It's probably a failure on those terms, but I had to try, right?

Show threadCharlie StrossJul 30, 2023
I will note that there is a lot more to the Culture universe than chatty starships with odd names: Iain was a litfic author writing in a space opera setting, so there's that.
Show threadGuitarsophist
@cstross I taught Excession once in a science fiction course. It had too many big ideas, too many characters, and too many plot lines for most of my students to follow. But the plots come together and at the core of it all is a ship mind that deeply cares for a particular human and is willing to risk a great deal to try to repair a relationship amidst a swirl of events that not only threatens the Culture, but the universe itself. I suppose that the plot is a bit like Casablanca, but it's great!
Jul 30, 2023 at 6:34pmWeb