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In my opinion, Le Guin, Butler and more recently authors like Chambers all live in the same sphere of speculative fiction or "sci fi" if you like that is in com

In my opinion, Le Guin, Butler and more recently authors like Chambers all live in the same sphere of speculative fiction or "sci fi" if you like that is in complete opposition to Clark, Weir and others which have dominated the genre for a long time now. These stories are less about some interesting imaginary application of physics or the unknown in a vast mechanistic universe and more about how society and individuals relate and imagining the infinite ways these two forces can interact. Often the backdrop is secondary to the exploration of the characters and the society they live in. I think this type of story is really fundamental to our progress as a society and we should all talk more about these authors and the stories they told/tell. It makes me happy to see Le Guin talked about, critiqued and praised on HN today. I think this is the talk where Le Guin talks about the continuity of this type of story telling and contrasts it with hard sci fi. Definitely worth a listen IMO. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PI1xwT2-74 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PI1xwT2-74

FredPret 3y ago
On the topic of alternative systems - Daniel Suarez wrote the excellent two books Daemon and Freedom (TM). MINOR SPOILER It describes an AI / algorithmic form of government that probably would never work but is interesting to think about and makes for great fiction
- MeImCounting 3y ago
  Well really I think that technology and societal/economic structures are deeply related in ways that dont necessarily get enough consideration in many discussions on the topic. For instance our current most successful form of capitalism is enabled primarily by the technologies created in the industrial revolution allowing shipping of goods and services long distances. We have seen it change rapidly and deeply as we developed telephony and computers and I suspect as new and better forms of communication and transportation evolve we will see further evolution of the basic system. Unknown technologies or applications of the future will likely cause further evolution and possibly revolution in how we structure our economic and social structures and I think its both fascinating and important to think and talk about these things! My pet favorite is the anarchic utopia of the Culture from Ian M Banks' Culture novels. Obviously impossible without the near infinite processing, energy and matter resources enabled by the Minds and the Ships they control but still fun to think about (and even aspire to value-wise in many cases IMO)
muffinman26 3y ago
Do you have any modern authors beyond Chambers that you would recommend? Chambers is one of my all-time favorites.
- MeImCounting 3y ago
  Well not really that modern and certainly the other side of the wholesome spectrum, Margaret Atwood is in the same sphere IMO as the other authors I mentioned. Also as I mentioned elsewhere I love Ian M Banks' Culture series. I would love to find other authors like Becky Chambers shes got great prose and is a great antidote to the pessimism of lots of other fiction I read.

FredPret 3y ago

On the topic of alternative systems - Daniel Suarez wrote the excellent two books Daemon and Freedom (TM). MINOR SPOILER It describes an AI / algorithmic form of government that probably would never work but is interesting to think about and makes for great fiction

MeImCounting 3y ago
Well really I think that technology and societal/economic structures are deeply related in ways that dont necessarily get enough consideration in many discussions on the topic. For instance our current most successful form of capitalism is enabled primarily by the technologies created in the industrial revolution allowing shipping of goods and services long distances. We have seen it change rapidly and deeply as we developed telephony and computers and I suspect as new and better forms of communication and transportation evolve we will see further evolution of the basic system. Unknown technologies or applications of the future will likely cause further evolution and possibly revolution in how we structure our economic and social structures and I think its both fascinating and important to think and talk about these things! My pet favorite is the anarchic utopia of the Culture from Ian M Banks' Culture novels. Obviously impossible without the near infinite processing, energy and matter resources enabled by the Minds and the Ships they control but still fun to think about (and even aspire to value-wise in many cases IMO)

muffinman26 3y ago

Do you have any modern authors beyond Chambers that you would recommend? Chambers is one of my all-time favorites.

MeImCounting 3y ago
Well not really that modern and certainly the other side of the wholesome spectrum, Margaret Atwood is in the same sphere IMO as the other authors I mentioned. Also as I mentioned elsewhere I love Ian M Banks' Culture series. I would love to find other authors like Becky Chambers shes got great prose and is a great antidote to the pessimism of lots of other fiction I read.