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Made In Canada Newsletter
Issue #12 - Mar 31, 2001

Welcome to the March MiC Newsletter. Great News -- The MiC Newsletter and the MiC website are both finalists for a 2001 Aurora Award. For Aurora voting month I've managed to scrounge up access to all five Aurora finalists in the Short Form English category. I've also created entry pages for all five finalists in the Long Form English category.  This month we feature a guest editorial by Isaac Szpindel. The Media File has some news and info on Canadian SF shows, movies, actors and filmmakers. The featured website is Sean Russell's new site. The Rush Quote of the Month is one of my personal favorites.

Feel free to send me news, upcoming book releases and especially your comments to canadian_sf@hotmail.com. 

Index

SF News

  • Robert J. Sawyer will be running an intensive four-day science fiction writing workshop this summer at the University of Toronto. Sawyer's workshop will be held as one stream of the Taddle Creek Summer Writers' Workshop, to be held Friday, June 29, to Monday, July 2, 2000. Registration deadline is Wednesday, June 27, 2001. Full information, including registration forms, is now available at: http://learn.utoronto.ca/creative/events.asp. You can also get more info at Rob's website. (source, Rob Sawyer)
  • Official MiC author John Clute will be in Toronto on April 5th at the Merril Collection of Science Fiction, Speculation and Fantasy, 239 College Street. He's in town to promote his new novel, Appleseed. (source, Mici Gold)
  • Be Afraid! an anthology of young adult horror stories published by Tundra Books and edited by Brampton author Edo van Belkom has been selected as an "Our Choice" title by the Canadian Children's Book Centre in Toronto. (More) (source, Edo van Belkom)
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SF Award News

  • Two Canadians have made the final ballot for a 2000 Nebula Award. Nalo Hopkinson's Midnight Robber and Charles de Lint's Forests of the Heart are both finalists for best novel. 
  • The winner of the 2000 Philip K. Dick award will be announced at Norwescon 24 on the weekend of April 13, 2000. Nalo Hopkinson's Midnight Robber is one of the 6 finalists. Good luck Nalo!

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Media File

Media Happenings
  • James Cameron's production company, Lightstorm Entertainment, has extended its deal at 20th Century Fox with another five-year, first-look pact, covering several genre films, Variety has reported. Lightstorm will provide two to four movies annually for Fox. Current projects include Brother Termite, an SF drama to be directed by Stephen Norrington (Blade) from a script by John Sayles, adapted from a novel by Patricia Anthony; The Coffin, a suspense noir thriller movie based on the comic series of the same name; and the romantic fantasy comedy Damned If You Do, to be directed by special-effects master Stan Winston. Lightstorm also plans to adapt Anne Rice's supernatural novel Ramses the Damned. "I've always loved having the Fox fanfare at the head of my films, so I was glad when we were able to make a deal for another five years," Cameron said.
  • Adrian Paul, one of the stars of the Highlander franchise, has a deal with Lion's Gate for a new syndicated series, Tracker, in which he plays an alien bounty hunter stuck on Earth. In an interview, Paul said he wanted the show "to have a different type of feel. It's about an alien on Earth; more like Starman is the way I want to go with it. I want it to have a lot of humour. I want it shot differently and I want it to have some interesting aspects like set design and really good writers that write non-sequitur dialogue." He added, "Lion's Gate approached me with it and asked me whether I'd be interested. I have a deal with Lion's Gate now to produce this show and put me in a film as well as star in this series. I didn't really want to do TV again, unless it was the right type of thing, so I'm interested to see what this is because I will have a lot of control over it."
  • Currently filming in Montreal is a Hallmark TV series based on the popular Neverending Story novel by Michael Ende. The novel previously spawned three successful movies, released in 1984, 1990 and 1994. Written by Leila Basen and directed by Giles Walker, the TV series appears to be a retelling of the original tale rather than an extension of the previous films. Mark Rendall plays the lonely 12-year-old Bastian Balthazar Bux, whose mother is dead and whose father ignores him. Bastian escapes into books and his own world called "Fantasia," where he can create solutions to his real-world dilemmas. The show also stars Jane Wheeler, John Dunn-Hill and Lisa Bronwyn Moore.

On the Box

  • Robert Leeshock (Liam Kincaid, Earth: Final Conflict) was interviewed by Cult Times about the fourth season of the show. In the season finale, "Point of No Return," Kincaid will be propelled to the centre of the "ultimate" confrontation between the Taelons and the Jaridians.
  • Space will be airing the excellent six-hour miniseries Frank Herbert's Dune on April 7, 8 and 9 at 9 p.m.
  • Upcoming on The Lone Gunmen: On the April 6 episode, "Planet of the Frohikes," a genetically altered chimpanzee alerts the Gunmen to an assassination plot; on the April 13 episode, "Maximum Byers," Jimmy and Byers go undercover as death row inmates in a Texas prison while trying to exonerate a convicted murderer.
  • Click here for an interview with Nigel Bennett, who plays Prince on Lexx. Space is airing the season 2 episode 15, "Woz," on April 1 and 2 and episode 16, "The Web," on April 8 and 9. For what's next in the season, go here.
  • Coming up on Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda: In "Fear and Loathing in the Milky Way," a routine mission on the Eureka Maru goes wrong for Harper and Trance when an old foe, Nightsider Gerentex, takes over the ship and forces them to assist him in his quest for wealth and power. In "The Devil Take the Hindmost," Dylan and Rev Bem attempt to protect a Wayist Mission from a slaver attack.

The Media file needs YOU! Please send your Canadian media news clips, tips and rumours to canadian_sf@hotmail.com. 

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Recently Released Books by Canadians

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Upcoming Book Releases by Canadians

Sources: Locus Online - Locus Magazine - author websites - publisher websites

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Recent Made In Canada Updates

Recently added entries

Recently updated entries

2001 Aurora Finalist MiC entry pages

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Made In Canada Treasures

MiC Hosted Stories

MiC Information Pages

Galleries

Interviews

Attention Authors: Treasures wanted! Do you have a story, essay or article collecting dust?  Don't leave your treasures buried! Send them to me and I will give them a home at Made In Canada.
 I can't pay ya -- but I'll sure help promote ya! 
I would also be happy to add your publication  credits with a link to your entry page?
Send them to canadian_sf@hotmail.com

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Featured Website

Sean Russell's New site

SF Site recently announced that it is hosting the new website for Canadian fantasy author Sean Russell. The site is a typical authors site with a "What's New" page, his bio, a bibliography, a review page, an interview page and cover art.

Each of Sean's published novels has its own page with the cover art, a description of the book, some personal comments from Sean, and a list of links to any online reviews available for that particular title.  

If you are a Sean Russell fan, be sure to check out this site. 

 Got a favorite website you would like featured? Send the URL to canadian_sf@hotmail.com

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MiCro Editorial by Isaac Szpindel

I am pleased to introduce this months guest editorial by Isaac Szpindel. Dr. Isaac "Buckaroo Banzai" Szpindel lives in Toronto, Ontario. He is an author, screenwriter, producer,  electrical engineer and neurologist.  Isaac has been working very hard lately as head writer/story editor for a new animated SF Action/Adventure TV series soon to be broadcast internationally. Another script he wrote for television is completing production with Warner Bros. and Nelvana and will be airing in Canada and in the US this spring.  His short story "By Its Cover" will be appearing in the Wonder Zone anthology, also this spring.

We ARE Canadian SF

by

Isaac Szpindel

"I liked it, really, I did. It wasn’t like Science Fiction at all."

Those exact words were spoken to me with regard to my short story, "Downcast"; a story that appeared in the 5th anniversary edition of Parsec Magazine. And although the words were intended to compliment me, it was this very intention that insulted me most.

"Well, Science Fiction is exactly what it’s like," I answered, "whether you liked it or not. Without the SF elements, the premise of the story is lost…"

There ensued a long and frustrating discussion.

The fact that SF is misperceived as the literary analog of pornography is certainly not news. The attitude in itself is no surprise. That this attitude persists and prevails, may, however, be somewhat surprising and may, in part, be our very own faults.

SF has figured prominently in classic literature from works such as Huxley’s "Brave New World" and Orwell’s "1984" to Atwood’s more contemporary "The Handmaid’s Tale". Both former works are taught frequently in Canadian high-schools. Indeed, they were part of my curriculum as a student. Surprisingly, though, at no time was the subject of genre ever discussed nor were the dirty words, "Science Fiction", ever mentioned. Had I realized the affront at the time, or recognized it as a symptom of a greater disease, I might have attempted to correct the situation. More likely, however, I would have said nothing, far too embarrassed to identify myself as a SF reader.

Now, however, considering myself with great pride to be a member of the SF writing community, I do recognize the subtle and not so subtle effrontery in the contemporary literary attitude towards our genre. And now that I am much more accustomed to embarrassment and am armed with a firm belief in the truth of our cause, I do believe there is something we can and must do. Unfortunately, I won’t be the first to say this, nor will I be the last, but it’s time we stood up to the media, the critics, and the public at large and proclaimed loudly and proudly what Science Fiction is all about. Some of us have done so already, and continue to do so, but not all of us. For our genre to be fully recognized and be given the respect it richly deserves, we cannot simply rely on those few loud voices with the blind faith that they will be heard and understood. We must add all our voices to those few to make sure that the message, our message, is effectively transmitted and received.

As writers, this is difficult. We work hard and hope that our stories will speak their own merits to our readers and critics. As Canadians, we adhere even more strongly to the belief that quiet righteousness and merit lead to reward. Nonsense! This philosophy hasn’t worked for the genre in the past, nor is it likely to work in the future. Expecting media-dazzled readers to find us, eventually, is an equally erroneous prospect. People do judge their books by their covers. People do read dust jackets and rely on recommendations. People do read what Oprah tells them to. It’s all about appearances and perception. Saying, to hell with it, my work will find its audience no matter what, ignores the marketing realities of publishing and prevents a significant portion of potential readership from accessing our material. All stories represent a partnership between the author and the reader. SF is just such a partnership that depends on each side for its care, well-being and very existence. When a story is lost, or prevented from reaching its intended audience for whatever reason, the loss to the author, reader, and the genre is both profound and tragic.

What should we do about this? Well, we can start by not being embarrassed by who we are, and by loudly proclaiming the merits of our genre. We choose to read and write SF, and we should be proud of it. What’s more, we should help and support each other in this admirable endeavor that is SF instead of making unnecessary excuses for it.

Now, this is the part where the inspirational music comes up, so CUE the INSPIRATIONAL MUSIC.

My name is, insert your name here, and I enjoy SF.

No, I don’t live in my parent’s basement, and so what if I did.

No, I don’t believe that aliens from another planet or that the representatives of some other conspiracy are trying to control my mind.

I read SF in public, and feel no need to hide it within the covers of a less socially reprehensible publication like "Hustler".

Not only do I read SF, but I write it too. (optional, if you don’t write)

No, that doesn’t mean I can get away with crap, it means I have to work that much harder just to make sure it isn’t crap. (optional, if you don’t write)

SF is literature.

Many great classics of literature are SF.

Many future classics of literature will be SF.

SF is literature.

Did I say that SF is literature? Because it is, you know.

My name is, insert your name here.

And, I AM CANADIAN SF!

CUT MUSIC. Now, why do I suddenly have the urge for a beer?

Isaac and I would love to hear your comments. Please send them to canadian_sf@hotmail.com

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Rush Quote of the Month

This months Rush quote is one of my favorites.

From Red Sector A on the album Grace Under Pressure

I hear the sound of gunfire at the prison gate
Are the liberators here -- do I hope or do I fear?
For my father and my brother, it's too late
But I must help my mother stand up straight...

Are we the last ones left alive?
Are we the only human beings to survive?
Neil Peart

Send your favorite Rush Quote to canadian_sf@hotmail.com

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Made In Canada is designed, developed and maintained by Don Bassie at canadian_sf@hotmail.com
Contributors: Don Bassie - Karen Bennett - Isaac Szpindel - Rob Sawyer - Bill Wanstrom - Edo van Belkom - Julie E. Czerneda - Donna McMahon - Marcie Lynn Tentchoff - Mici Gold - Jena Snyder