Pages

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Prof. Dr. Christiana Estella Rowbotham III – Reading Recommendation.

I have in my hands the forthcoming anthology edited by Ann and Jeff Vandermeer, Steampunk II: Steampunk Reloaded.

Featuring stories by amongst others William Gibson, Margo Lanagan, Caitlin R. Kiernan, Marc Laidlaw, Tanith Lee and Stephen Baxter, this second volume leads us further into the realm of gears and gadgets, following on the success of the preceding volume.

One of the best things about Steampunk Vol.2 is that it contains not only fiction, but non-fiction essays and observations about Steampunk as a genre and a mode of writing. As someone who is interested in the intersection between creative writing and academic analysis I think that more (particularly genre orientated) anthologies should be amalgamating themselves like this. The reading of well-written fiction is of course a pleasure unto itself; however, the more informed we are about how and why certain aspects of a particular mode of fiction appeals to us, the more we are able to enjoy the work on several nuanced levels.

Steampunk II: Steampunk Reloaded will be released October 2010.