This week’s discussion begins with Gary wondering about what he tentatively calls the use of absurdism in some recent novels, mentioning Kelly Barnhill’s When Women Were Dragons and Sunyi Dean's forthcoming The Book Eaters, each of which features a powerful central metaphor that refuses to resolve itself into traditional SF or fantasy systems—somewhat like the old Theatre of the Absurd playwrights like Ionesco. This leads to yet another discussion of what may be happening with the notion of genres, and how an earlier generation of gatekeeping editors has given way to editors more welcoming to a variety of voices and approaches. We more or less conclude that, while this reinvigorates the traditional genres, there are plenty of options for readers who still prefer the familiar formulas and traditions. Finally, we talk a bit about getting together for a possible live podcast at Chicon later this summer.
Episode 487: Ten Minutes with Maureen McHugh
Episode 490: Ten Minutes with Amal El-Mohtar
Episode 489: Ten Minutes with Daniel Abraham
Episode 488: Ten Minutes with Brooke Bolander
Episode 486: Firing the canon
Episode 485: Ten Minutes with A.T. Greenblatt
Episode 484: Ten Minutes with Cheryl Morgan
Episode 483: Ten Minutes with Alec Nevala-Lee
Episode 482: Ten Minutes with Arkady Martine
Episode 481: Ten Minutes with Molly Gloss
Episode 480: Ten Minutes with K.M. Szpara
Episode 479: What Comes Next?
Episode 478: Ten Minutes with Sarah Monette and Katherine Addison
Episode 477: Ten Minutes with James P. Blaylock
Episode 476: Twenty One Minutes with Peter Watts
Episode 475: Ten Minutes with M. John Harrison
Episode 474: Ten Minutes with Jane Yolen
Episode 473: Ten Minutes with Nancy Kress and Jack Skillingstead
Episode 472: Ten Minutes with Kij Johnson
Episode 471: Ten Minutes with Alaya Dawn Johnson
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