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Novacon
Novacon is an annual science fiction convention, usually held each November in the English Midlands. Launched in 1971, it has been hosted by the Birmingham Science Fiction Group since 1972. History The first Novacon was organised by the University of Aston Science Fiction Group in November 1971, at a time when the Eastercon was the only regular annual sf convention in the UK. The first Novacon was judged a success and its members voted to make it an annual event. The organisation was passed to the recently formed Birmingham Science Fiction Group to ensure continuity from year to year. Since then, Novacon has developed into a fan-centred rather than academic convention, based around a single-stream, structured programme and intended to let its members network and socialise, as well as attend programme items; there are usually also several science-oriented items. Nova Awards The annual Nova Awards are presented at Novacon. These are given in the categories of Best Fanzine, Best Fan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Birmingham Science Fiction Group
The Birmingham Science Fiction Group (BSFG), also known as the "Brum Group", held its first meeting on 25 June 1971. It runs regular meetings in Birmingham, England, where SF fans can meet one another and professionals in the field in a friendly environment, and has organised the annual SF convention Novacon since 1972. History There were at least two previous versions of the Birmingham Science Fiction Group prior to the launch of the current incarnation in 1971 (many of those involved had been members of the 1960s fan scene, described in Peter Weston's hardback memoir ''With Stars in My Eyes''). Initially, it shared Britain's second city with the Aston Science Fiction Group, which hosted the first Novacon that same year; by 1972, the Brum Group had become the dominant SF gathering in the region and took over Novacon from that year onwards. In contrast to many of its contemporaries, the BSFG had a formal constitution (copied in part from a local branch of the Young Conservatives) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christopher Priest (novelist)
Christopher Priest (born 14 July 1943) is a British novelist and science fiction writer. His works include '' Fugue for a Darkening Island'', '' The Inverted World'', ''The Affirmation'', ''The Glamour'', ''The Prestige'', and '' The Separation''. Priest has been strongly influenced by the science fiction of H. G. Wells and in 2006 was appointed Vice-President of the international H. G. Wells Society. Early life Priest was born in Cheadle, Cheshire, England in 1943. As a child, Priest spent some time holidaying in the English county of Dorset. Here he explored the ancient hillfort of Maiden Castle, near Dorchester, which he would later use as the location for the novel A Dream of Wessex. Career Priest's first story, "The Run", was published in 1966. Formerly an accountant and audit clerk, he became a full-time writer in 1968. One of his early novels, ''The Affirmation'', concerns a traumatized man who apparently flips into a delusional world in which he experiences a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
James White (author)
James White (7 April 1928 – 23 August 1999) was a Northern Irish author of science fiction novellas, short stories and novels. He was born in Belfast and returned there after spending some early years in Canada. After a few years working in the clothing industry, he worked at Short Brothers Ltd., an aircraft company based in Belfast, from 1965 until taking early retirement in 1984 as a result of diabetes. White married Margaret Sarah Martin, another science fiction fan, in 1955 and the couple had three children. He died of a stroke. He became a fan of science fiction in 1941 and co-wrote two fan magazines, from 1948 to 1953 and 1952 to 1965. Encouraged by other fans, White began publishing short stories in 1953, and his first novel was published in 1957. His best-known novels were the twelve of the Sector General series, the first published in 1962 and the last after his death. White also published nine other novels, two of which were nominated for major awards, unsuccessful ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
David Langford
David Rowland Langford (born 10 April 1953) is a British author, editor, and critic, largely active within the science fiction field. He publishes the science fiction fanzine and newsletter ''Ansible'', and holds the all-time record for most Hugo Awards, with a total of 29 wins. Personal background David Langford was born and grew up in Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales before studying for a degree in Physics at Brasenose College, Oxford, where he first became involved in science fiction fandom. Langford is married to Hazel and is the brother of the musician and artist Jon Langford. His first job was as a weapons physicist at the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment at Aldermaston, Berkshire from 1975 to 1980. In 1985 he set up a "tiny and informally run software company" with science fiction writer Christopher Priest, called Ansible Information after Langford's news-sheet. The company has ceased trading. Increasing hearing difficulties have reduced Langford's participation i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eastercon
Eastercon is the common name for the annual British national science fiction convention. The convention is organised by voluntary self-organising committees, rather than a permanent entity. Organisation Groups of fans (typically 5–8 in number) get together to form "bid committees" and plan where they want to hold the Eastercon, who they want to be their guests of honour, what the theme of the convention will be, etc. They circulate their proposals and the winning bid is chosen by a vote among the people who attend the bid session at the Eastercon two years in advance, or one year if no bid was successful at the bid session two years out. Until the early 1990s there were commonly several bids to hold the Eastercon, but since then the realisation appears to have grown that putting on an Eastercon involves a lot of hard work, and now it is normal for there to be only one serious bid. There may also be a number of joke bids - it is rumoured that in 1989 the joke bid for ''Incon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Geoff Ryman
Geoffrey Charles Ryman (born 1951) is a Canadian writer of science fiction, fantasy, slipstream and historical fiction. Biography Ryman was born in Canada and moved to the United States at age 11. He earned degrees in History and English at UCLA, then moved to England in 1973, where he has lived most of his life. He is gay. In addition to being an author, Ryman started a web design team for the UK government at the Central Office of Information in 1994. He also led the teams that designed the first official British Monarchy and 10 Downing Street websites, and worked on the UK government's flagship website www.direct.gov.uk. Works Ryman says he knew he was a writer "before ecould talk", with his first work published in his mother's newspaper column at six years of age. He is best known for his science fiction; however, his first novel was the fantasy '' The Warrior Who Carried Life'', and his revisionist fantasy of ''The Wizard of Oz'', '' Was...'', has been called "his most a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Holdstock
Robert Paul Holdstock (2 August 1948 – 29 November 2009) was an English novelist and author best known for his works of Celts, Celtic, Nordic countries, Nordic, Goths, Gothic and Picts, Pictish fantasy literature, predominantly in the fantasy subgenres, fantasy subgenre of mythic fiction. Holdstock broke into print in 1968. His science fiction and fantasy works explore philosophy, philosophical, psychology, psychological, anthropology, anthropological, Spirituality, spiritual and forest, woodland themes. He received three BSFA awards and won the World Fantasy Award in the category of Best Novel of 1985. Early life Robert Holdstock, the eldest of five children, was born in Hythe, Kent, Hythe, Kent. His father, Robert Frank Holdstock, was a police officer and his mother, Kathleen Madeline Holdstock, was a nurse. At the age of seven he started attending Rainham Mark Grammar School, Gillingham Grammar School in the Medway, Medway Towns. He recalled that as a young adult he had ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edwin Charles Tubb
Edwin Charles Tubb (15 October 1919 – 10 September 2010) was a British writer of science fiction, fantasy and Western (genre), western novels. The author of over 140 novels and 230 short stories and novellas, Tubb is best known for Dumarest saga, The Dumarest Saga (US collective title: ''Dumarest of Terra''), an epic science-fiction saga set in the far future. Michael Moorcock wrote, "His reputation for fast-moving and colourful SF writing is unmatched by anyone in Britain." Much of Tubb's work was written under pseudonyms including Gregory Kern, Carl Maddox, Alan Guthrie, Eric Storm and George Holt. He used 58 pen names over five decades of writing, although some of these were publishers' Pen name#Collective names, house names also used by other writers: Volsted Gridban (along with John Russell Fearn), Gill Hunt (with John Brunner (novelist), John Brunner and Dennis Hughes (novelist), Dennis Hughes), King Lang (with George Hay and John W Jennison), Roy Sheldon (with H. J. Campb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christopher Evans (author)
Christopher D. Evans (born 1951 in Tredegar, Wales) is a British science fiction writer and children's author. His novels include ''Capella's Golden Eyes'' (1980); '' The Insider'' (1981); ''Mortal Remains'' (1995); and ''Ice Tower'' (2000). He is the co-editor (with Robert Holdstock) of three original SF anthologies, ''Other Edens'' (1987); ''Other Edens II'' (1988); and ''Other Edens III'' (1989). Evans won the BSFA award for the 1993 novel '' Aztec Century'', which Iain M. Banks described as '...intelligent, finely written, and towards the end, absolutely nail-biting.' In addition to his works for younger readers, he wrote the tie-in novelisation of the film ''Innerspace'' (1987). Evans published these books using a pseudonym. His book ''Omega'', an alternate history thriller, was released by PS Publishing in 2008. It was his first novel for adults in a decade. Selected works Series novels ;Hood's Army (as Nathan Elliott) The ''Hood's Army'' trilogy is a series o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Science Fiction Convention
Science fiction conventions are gatherings of fans of the speculative fiction genre, science fiction. Historically, science fiction conventions had focused primarily on literature, but the purview of many extends to such other avenues of expression as films, television, comics, animation, and games. The format can vary but will tend to have a few similar features such as a guest of honour, discussion panels, readings and large special events such as opening/closing ceremonies and some form of party or entertainment. Science fiction conventions started off primarily in the UK and US but have now spread further and several countries have their own individual conventions as well as playing host to rotating international conventions. History The precise time and place of the first science fiction convention is a matter of some dispute. The idea and form was clearly anticipated in Robert Bloch's short story about a large convention of writers, "The Ultimate Ultimatum" (''Fantasy M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Garry Kilworth
Garry Douglas Kilworth (born 5 July 1941 in York) is a British science fiction, fantasy and historical novelist, and a former Royal Air Force cryptographer. Early life Kilworth was raised partly in Aden, South Arabia, the son of an airman. Having an itinerant father, he travelled widely, both in Britain and abroad, and attended over 20 different schools before the age of 15. Kilworth is a graduate of King's College London. Career Kilworth went to military school and served in the Royal Air Force for 18 years as a cryptographer. On demobilisation he joined Cable & Wireless, an international telecommunications company, leaving them to become a full-time writer in 1981. His science fiction and fantasy does not fit any set formula, being more interested in the enigmatic and strange, with roots in folk lore. He states that his one great passion is the short story, at which he is most adept. However, as an eclectic writer he has produced novels in several genres including science fic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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